Guterres calls for a halt to disinformation and hate speech on social networks

The proliferation of hate and lies on the internet represents a "grave danger on a global scale" that the world must confront, the United Nations Secretary-General said at the launch of his report on the veracity of information on digital platforms.

António Guterres stressed that the state of alarm over the potential threat posed by the rapid development of artificial intelligence should not obscure the damage currently being caused by digital technologies that enable online manipulation and misinformation.

"The proliferation of hate and lies in the digital space is causing serious global harm, right now. And it fuels conflict, death and destruction, now. It also threatens democracy and human rights and undermines public health and climate action... now," he explained.

The UN head highlighted the benefits of digital platforms in supporting communities in times of crisis and struggle, empowering marginalised voices and helping to mobilise global movements for racial justice and gender equality.

However, he noted that they are also misused to distort scientific dissemination and spread misinformation and hatred to billions of people, fuelling conflict, threatening democracy, human rights, undermining public health and climate action.

He said this global threat calls for coordinated international action to make the digital space safer and more inclusive, while protecting human rights.

"His proposals are aimed at creating safeguards to help governments unite around guidelines that promote facts, while exposing conspiracies and lies, and safeguarding freedom of expression and information," he said.

Insufficient responses

Guterres pointed to the responsibility of some technology companies that failed to do enough and acted too late to prevent their platforms from contributing to the spread of violence and hatred, while governments occasionally resorted to drastic measures, such as shutdowns and internet bans, that have no legal basis and violate human rights.

The report lays out the framework for an organised global response through a Code of Conduct for truthful information on digital platforms, outlining possible barriers to contain this threat while protecting freedom of expression and information.

Code of Conduct proposals

• Governments, technology companies and other stakeholders should refrain from using, supporting or amplifying disinformation and hate speech for any purpose.
• Governments must ensure a free, viable, independent and pluralistic media landscape, with strong protections for journalists
• Digital platforms must ensure security and privacy by design in all products, along with consistent application of policies and remedies in all countries and languages
• All stakeholders must take urgent and immediate action to ensure that all artificial intelligence applications are safe, responsible and ethical, and comply with human rights obligations
• Tech companies must move away from business models that prioritise compromise over human rights, privacy and security
• Advertisers and digital platforms must ensure that advertisements are not placed alongside disinformation or hate speech online, and that advertisements containing disinformation are not promoted
• Digital platforms must ensure meaningful transparency and allow researchers and academics access to data, while respecting the privacy of users.

Participation cannot be above human rights

Asked by the press how he is confident that tech companies and governments will take concrete steps to make the digital space safer and more inclusive, Guterres stressed the need to find mechanisms that include multi-stakeholder approaches to define guidelines, red lines, and at the same time exchange good practices and ensure that business models are challenged.

"And, of course, there is one central aspect: these platforms must make money. But the problem is that the current business model prioritises participation over privacy, truth and people's human rights (...) So it is important that platforms understand that, of course, a profitable activity cannot create massive profits at the expense of a participatory model. That is above all other considerations," he stressed.

Creation of a new scientific advisory board

The Secretary-General announced that he will appoint a scientific advisory board in the coming days, which will include a number of external experts, including two experts on artificial intelligence and the chief scientists of the International Telecommunications Union and UNESCO.

He also expressed the intention to create an advisory body on artificial intelligence, following the upcoming Sustainable Development Goals Summit on 18-19 September.