Three online consumer rights organisations, Access Now, Civil Liberties Union for Europe and European Digital Rights (EDRi) published a report on Thursday 18 October assessing the European Commission's initiatives on online misinformation.
In doing so, they called on the institution to refrain from developing a binding policy until research has been conducted to assess the impact of online misinformation on society. Measures should be developed on the basis of evidence-based results and should not infringe freedom of expression, they warn.
The three organizations also caution against some of the solutions currently under consideration. This is particularly the case with the establishment of an independent European network of fact checkers, proposed by the High Level Group on Online Disinformation (see EUROPE 11979). They also advise against placing blind trust in artificial intelligence by implementing automated solutions or moving towards limiting online anonymity.
The report is intended to feed into the Commission's thinking, which is expected to publish its action plan on online misinformation on 5 December (see EUROPE 12118), they explain. It further recommends that the Commission address the business model of online manipulation, increase media information and focus work on data protection in the context of elections.
See the full report: https://bit.ly/2ExmdTN. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)