Twitter set to permanently ban users who spread fake COVID-19 news

Twitter set to permanently ban users who spread fake COVID-19 news

- Twitter is set to punish those who spread misinformation about COVID-19

- As a result of this, the company has introduced a strike system

- When a user violates the platform’s rules for the fifth time, he or she would be permanently banned

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Some people who are in the habit of spreading misinformation on Twitter might have their account banned when they venture into COVID-19 lies.

According to the social media giant, the company will start labelling misleading tweets about COVID-19 vaccines.

Twitter said it has introduced a “strike system” that will gradually escalate to a permanent ban after the fifth offending tweet, Aljazeera reports.

Twitter set to permanently ban users who spread fake COVID-19 news
Twitter says users who continue to post misleading tweets about COVID-19 vaccines face a permanent ban. Photo Credit: @pfizer
Source: Twitter

Its statement read:

“We believe the strike system will help to educate the public on our policies and further reduce the spread of potentially harmful and misleading information on Twitter,” the San Francisco-based company said in a blog post.

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“Particularly for repeated moderate and high-severity violations of our rules.”

Here are the ways in which the strike system will work

  • Strike 1 - Twitter users will be notified when a tweet is labelled as misleading or needs to be removed
  • Strike 2 and 3: Account will be blocked for 12 hours
  • Strike 4: Account will be sidelined for seven days
  • Strike 5: Accounts permanently suspended

Meanwhile, the federal government has launched a portal for Nigerians to register themselves for the COVID-19 vaccination ahead of the delivery of N3.92 million doses of vaccine.

This was made known in a tweet by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) and sighted by Legit.ng on Monday, March 1.

The development was also confirmed by presidential aide, Tolu Ogunlesi, who noted that the portal has been opened.

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Aanu Adegun is a politics and current affairs content editor at Legit.ng with over 7 years of experience in both digital and traditional media. A graduate of English Studies from Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Ondo state, Aanu started his journalism career as a features writer. Aanu, who is also a creative writer has written books and children magazines. He once anchored some specialised pages of a national newspaper. Aanu is also a satirist.

Source: Legit.ng

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