NEW DELHI – Social media platform WhatsApp has introduced a new feature in a bid to check the spread of fake news in India, which is witnessing general elections beginning April 11.
WhatsApp has unveiled the new feature named “Checkpoint Tipline” where people can check the authenticity of information received.
This tipline will help create a database of rumours to study misinformation during elections for Checkpoint — a research project commissioned and technically assisted by WhatsApp, said an official statement issued by the social media giant.
To use it, people can submit misinformation or rumors they receive to a particular number of the Checkpoint Tipline WhatsApp.
Once such message is sent, the verification center will seek to respond and inform the user if the claim made in the message shared is verified or not.
This response, after the proper verification process, will indicate if the information is classified as true, false, misleading, or out of scope.
Other various social media platforms have also initiated similar attempts to check spread of false or misleading information. Two days ago, another social media giant Facebook claimed to have removed as many as 687 pages and accounts allegedly linked to the country’s main opposition party — Indian National Congress (INC).
