Building resilience to disinformation

People in open societies form opinions based on a set of shared facts. That's why diverse and reliable sources of news and information are so important. Disinformation agents, however, try to drown out debate by:

1.      overwhelming the information environment; or

2.      making facts difficult to find.

At a time when disinformation and information manipulation tactics are growing more sophisticated and change quickly, it is important that individuals and governments be vigilant and promote the integrity of the global information space while upholding human rights and fundamental freedoms.

When Global Affairs Canada interviewed Lutz Güllner, Head of Information Integrity and Countering Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference at the European External Action Service, he underscored the importance of resilience to disinformation.

How can people protect themselves against disinformation?

Individual actions collectively contribute to a more informed and resilient society. Here are some tips and tools to help spot whether what you're reading is true or not.

What you should do when you encounter disinformation:

✅ Ask questions: Replying with questions, like "Is that a reliable source?" can be almost as effective as correcting false information.

✅ Don't share it: Help stop the spread of disinformation by simply not sharing it.

✅ Correct or debunk it: Share accurate information and include a reliable source or explain why the information is false.

✅ Report it: You can report the disinformation to some social media platforms by clicking the button for more options (often represented by three dots) and selecting “Report post.”  

Source: MediaSmarts, Correcting disinformation

 You can find more tips like how to identify fraudulent websites or spotting fake social media profiles, at Canada.ca/disinformation

What are governments doing to combat disinformation?

Canada takes countering disinformation seriously because of its impact on a healthy democracy. Combatting foreign disinformation and information manipulation outlines how the Government of Canada is engaged in countering information manipulation.

You can read our LinkedIn article, Canada's Fight Against Disinformation, to learn more about what we're doing to combat disinformation.