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2,500 social media accounts under govt's radar for spreading disinformation: Report

Last Updated 17 September 2020, 10:00 IST

Over 2,500 social media accounts are under the government's radar for allegedly spreading Chinese propaganda and disinformation as tensions along the eastern Ladakh region continue to rise.

Accounts on social platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube have been traced to Pakistan, Hong Kong, United Kingdom, Russia and China, according to a report by The Economic Times quoting sources. After analysing the IP (internet protocol) addresses of the user, an official told the news publication that a large number of these accounts were operating from Pakistan.

“In some countries where the social media is banned, it is being accessed through virtual private network (VPN),” added the official.

The issue of fake news and disinformation prevails in India and the problem has been flagged to social media companies. Some of these fake accounts have been blocked, however, a large number of handles are still under surveillance.

“Many banned accounts reappear by changing handle names and details in the bio-data. In multiple cases, e-mail IDs and contacts numbers required for opening accounts on social networking sites were found identical,” the official said.

The India-China border row began in June after 20 Indian soldiers were killed at the Galwan Valley. India retaliated by banning 177 apps, citing “activities are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of the state and public order”.

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(Published 17 September 2020, 06:36 IST)

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