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Exclusive: social media hashtag #thinkingforyourself bolsters residents refusing to follow rulesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageCovid scepticism in Bolton has led to it having the highest infection rate of coronavirus in the country, a local MP has said, as a #thinkingforyourself social media trend gains traction.With 169 cases for every 100,000 people, the Greater Manchester town has the highest rate in England...

Research findings undermine firm’s claims it is cracking down on inaccurate newsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageWebsites spreading misinformation about health attracted nearly half a billion views on Facebook in April alone, as the coronavirus pandemic escalated worldwide, a report has found.Facebook had promised to crack down on conspiracy theories and inaccurate news early in the pandemic. But as its executives promised...

The US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, says the Trump administration wants the removal of 'untrusted' Chinese apps from service in the country. Calling popular social media platforms TikTok and WeChat dangerous, Pompeo also raised concerns around data theft of intellectual property, including potential Covid-19 vaccines, through cloud-based services Continue reading...

Post included video in which Trump wrongly said that children were ‘almost immune’ from illnessFacebook has removed a post from Donald Trump’s page for spreading false information about the coronavirus, a first for the social company that has been harshly criticized for repeatedly allowing the president to break its content rules.The post included video of Trump falsely asserting that children were “almost immune from...

Singer’s claim vaccine is being concealed is latest example of stars spreading falsehoods during pandemicCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageDancer, singer, songwriter, actor, director – Madonna has had quite the career.But the queen of pop’s latest reinvention came this week in the form of a video posted on Instagram that shared a coronavirus conspiracy theory with her 15 million followers. Continue reading...

Brussels shifts position by accusing Beijing for first time of running false campaignsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageChina has been accused by Brussels of running disinformation campaigns inside the European Union, as the bloc set out a plan to tackle a “huge wave” of false facts about the coronavirus pandemic. The European commission said Russia and China were running “targeted influence operations and...

Researchers find coordinated effort to promote conspiracy theory that coronavirus is a bioweapon engineered by ChinaMisinformation about the origins of Covid-19 is far more likely to be spread by pro-Trump, QAnon or Republican bots on Twitter than any other source, according to a study commissioned by the Australia Institute’s Centre for Responsible Technology.In late March, when the coronavirus pandemic was taking hold in the...

MPs say tech firms have failed to explain how they are tackling false informationCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageMPs have berated leading tech firms for failing to answer questions about taking responsibility for disinformation in the coronavirus pandemic, accusing the companies of giving vague, preprepared answers.Representatives from Facebook, Google and Twitter appeared in front of a Commons select committee but struggled to...

Our attitudes and rituals are undergoing a transformation during the Covid-19 crisis. Can we hope that a lasting good will come of it?See all our coronavirus coverageHannah Arendt once wrote that in times of deep crisis “we have a right to expect illumination”. It seems callous to suggest that this tenebrous pandemic is letting the light in, and daft to offer immediate consolations amid...

Leaving the house to take the garbage out has suddenly become a rare treat for isolated Australians, who are putting in all kinds of effort for the occasion. The Bin isolation outing Facebook group has amassed almost half a million members in under two weeks. Here are some of our favourite posts Continue reading...

Leaving the house to take the garbage out has suddenly become a rare treat for isolated Australians, who are putting in all kinds of effort for the occasion. The Bin isolation outing Facebook group has amassed almost half a million members in under two weeks. Here are some of our favourite posts Continue reading...

A ban on weddings, and other public events did not deter one couple from 'tying the knot' in Slough over the weekend. While it wasn't a legally recognised ceremony, David Howell and Brenda Rolfe made vows to each other in front of their pastor who appeared on a YouTube live stream. After the ceremony guests were invited to the wedding reception on the Zoom app, and ...

Social network restores posts that were wrongly removed as system went haywireCoronavirus – latest updatesAll our coronavirus coverageA Facebook spam filter that went haywire on Tuesday evening and began removing many perfectly acceptable posts was unrelated to coronavirus, the company has said.All the removed posts have been restored, a Facebook executive said, attributing the removals to an automated system. Despite the fact that many...

People living in Madrid stood on balconies and leaned out of windows to clap and cheer doctors and healthcare workers on Saturday evening following a campaign launched on social media to show appreciation after the Spanish government declared a state of emergency over the coronavirus.People have been ordered to stay at home for two weeks unless they have to buy food or medicine or...