UN tackles ‘infodemic’ of
misinformation and cybercrime in COVID-19 crisis
The
United Nations Department of Global Communications (DGC) promotes global
awareness and understanding of the work of the United Nations.
From
selling fake coronavirus cures online to a cyberattack on hospitals’ critical
information systems, criminals are exploiting the COVID-19 crisis, the United
Nations has warned, as it also steps up its fight against a proliferation of
false information about the virus.
“We’re
not just fighting an epidemic; we’re fighting an infodemic,” said Tedros
Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) at
a gathering of foreign policy and security experts in Munich, Germany, in mid-
February, referring to fake news that “spreads faster and more easily than this
virus.”
WHO
explains that infodemics are an excessive amount of information about a
problem, which makes it difficult to identify a solution. They can spread
misinformation, disinformation and rumours during a health emergency.
Infodemics can hamper an effective public health response and create confusion
and distrust among people.
In
response, a team of WHO “myth busters” are working with search and media
companies like Facebook, Google, Pinterest, Tencent, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube
and others to counter the spread of rumours, which include misinformation like
that the virus cannot survive in the hot weather, that taking a high dose of
chloroquine medication can protect you, and that consuming large quantities of
ginger and garlic can prevent the virus.
These
companies, according to news reports, are aggressively filtering out unfounded
medical advice, hoaxes and other false information that they say could risk
public health. In a rare move, Facebook and Twitter have taken down a post from
a head of State that falsely stated that a drug was working everywhere against
the coronavirus.
Criminals
are also disguising themselves as WHO to steal money or sensitive information.
(See scam alert from WHO)
Advice from Cybersecurity Expert
Neil
Walsh, Chief, Cybercrime and Anti-Money Laundering Section, at the United
Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), advised that people should get
information from trusted sources, such as the World Health Organization (WHO)
and the United Nations. Furthermore, the United Nations family of
agencies, funds, and programmes is a trusted source of authoritative
Coronavirus-related information on many fronts. For further information
please visit the UN Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Portal.
In
times of crises, cybersecurity is critically important, he stressed, adding
that a huge number of people under lockdown or movement restrictions
are now working and studying remotely, making them susceptible to
cybercrime. Criminals could take hospitals offline and disrupt the work
of the United Nations, he explained. He has seen an increase in incidents
everywhere, cautioning against phishing emails with attachments and links.
Children
could easily fall prey to cybercriminals as they often don’t distinguish the
real and virtual worlds, he said, pointing to some materials to educate
children against such risks. (See UNODC’s materials explaining cybersecurity to
kids).
Despite
the growing number of cybercrimes, acts of humanity are also emerging, Mr.
Walsh said. After a hospital fell victim to ransomware, a small New Zealand
cybersecurity company offered free recovery services to hospitals that are in
the forefront of the fight against COVID-19.
Earlier
today, Mr. Walsh, along with Thomas Braun of the Office of Information and
Communications Technology at United Nations Headquarters in New York, gave a
webinar to UN personnel on how to stay safe while working remotely.
In
her recent Facebook post, Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications
Melissa Fleming said: “We are not only fighting a ‘pandemic’, in the words of
Dr. Tedros, who leads the World Health Organization (WHO), we are fighting an
‘infodemic’… My global communications team at the United Nations will be
stepping up our communications efforts to make sure people have the best, most
credible information and also inspiration from examples of global cooperation
and viral acts of humanity.”
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