Facebook, Google, Twitter team up on election security ahead of RNC and DNC
The collaboration also includes Reddit, Microsoft, Verizon, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Wikimedia Foundation.
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Facebook, Google, Twitter, Reddit, Microsoft, Verizon, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Wikimedia Foundation met with the US government.
Tech giants in the US are continuing to meet regularly to work together on protecting their platforms ahead of the 2020 presidential election. In a joint statement released Wednesday, Facebook , Google , Twitter , Reddit , Microsoft , Verizon , Pinterest , LinkedIn and Wikimedia Foundation said they're countering information operations on their platforms in the lead up to the 2020 Democratic National Convention (DNC) and the Republican National Convention (RNC).
They met today with US government agencies working to protect the election's integrity, including from the spread of disinformation and the threat of potential foreign interference in the election, like the Russian interference discovered after the 2016 election.
"We discussed preparations for the upcoming conventions and scenario planning related to election results," the tech giants said in a joint statement. "We will continue to stay vigilant on these issues and meet regularly ahead of the November election."
Joint industry statement on ongoing election security collaboration between tech companies and USG agencies tasked with protecting the integrity of the election pic.twitter.com/c1fHERHWtw
— Facebook Newsroom (@fbnewsroom) August 12, 2020
The DNC will take place next week, from Aug. 17 to Aug. 20, while the RNC is scheduled for the week after, between Aug. 24 and 27.
Tech companies and social media platforms have been working to curb the spread of misinformation during the lead up to the 2020 election, including by putting voting information labels on posts by candidates President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, flagging misleading posts by the candidates, tracking and exposing disinformation, publicly tracking political ads, labelling government and state-affiliated media accounts, unearthing deepfakes and curbing news pages that have political affiliations. Some are also giving their own employees paid time off to vote on Nov. 3.