Fighting Infodemic during Covid-19 Pandemic: Exploring Each Legal Dimension.

El Ryan Paras Cabodbod

AB- Philosophy

Abstract

This study analysing the infodemic in the Philippines and during the intense
lockdowns during the early stages of the covid-19 pandemic. During the said lockdown,
people are observed to be more present in social media. The World Health Organization
(WHO,2020) pronounced that “infodemic” poses a severe problem in public health. This
study analyzes the fact-checked articles of Verafiles.Org, fact-checkers certified by non-
partisan International Fact-Checking Network, during the first six months of covid-19 era.
Using content analysis, the researcher examines the sources, claims, treatmment, and
access to the voice of verafiles fact-checking articles. Results showed that most fact-
checked “fake news” claim found in vera files.org are disinformation. This study shows
legal responses of infodemic whether it is enough to combat this endemic problem which
is infodemic. There have also been reports of infodemic peddlers being reported to
authorities and facing legal punishment. It was also discovered that the majority of the
claims are concerning the Covid-19 pandemic, with Facebook groups, pages, and
websites named as sources of these "false News."

Keywords: Pandemic, fake news, disinformation campaigns, law enforcement,

infodemic, fact-checking

1. Introduction

This study investigates the probable scenarios in which an information epidemic

causes chaos, resulting in unjustifiable information, which may or may not be true. All of

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these factors have combined to create a “perfect storm” which is making more people

vulnerable to disinformation campaigns (Courtney, 2021. These disinformation are a

threat to our society and our way of life. They create social unrest, alarmism, disbelief,

chaos, undermine public security and ultimately creates suffocation of truth to false

information. We have seen parallel outbreaks of disinformation and misinformation

regarding the virus since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, ranging from phony

coronavirus cures, fraudulent claims, and dangerous health advice to outlandish

conspiracy theories. In turn, an infodemic can hasten illness spread, impede efficient

public health responses, and promote confusion, fear, and distrust.

The term infodemic has been coined to outline the perils of misinformation

phenomena during the management of disease outbreaks, since it could even speed up the

epidemic process by influencing and fragmenting social response (S.M.& Markuzon, N).

According to the World Health Organization (WHO, 2020) infodemic is voluminous

information that contains false or misleading information in digital and physical

environments during a disease outbreak. It causes confusion and risk-taking behaviors

that can harm health. It also leads to mistrust in health authorities and undermines the

public health response. With growing digitization an expansion of social media and

internet use information can spread more rapidly. This can help to more quickly fill

information voids but can also amplify harmful messages (WHO, 2020).

2. Review of Related Literature

2.1 Broader Definition

This chapter examines the underlying papers, which include a detailed study of

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the ideas that infodemic cause public safety concerns. “Fake news is defined as

"fabricated material that is similar in appearance to news media content but differs in

organizational procedure or goal "(David et al., 2018). It is also defined as a "virus"

spreading among users in social media (Chen, 2017). UNESCO (2018) suggests there are

three categories that may fall the "orchestrated campaigns of spreading untruths" on social

media. These are the following: 1.) Disinformation is false information that is distributed

with the goal of causing harm to an individual, a social group, an organization, or a

nation. 2.) Misinformation is false information that is spread with no intention of causing

harm to others, and 3.) Mal-information is correct information that is utilized to harm an

individual, a social group, a company, or a country.

In another study by Vosoughi et al. (2018), they found out that false information

spreads much faster, farther, and broader than the truth in all categories and aspects of

communication. False stories are more novel than accurate news, suggesting the public

share them more than truthful ones. According to the Global Disinformation Order of the

University of Oxford in their Computational Propaganda Research Project, evidence

showed that social media manipulation campaigns had taken place in 70 countries. China

has become the top player of disinformation order, and Facebook remains the leading

manipulation platform (Bradshaw & Howard, 2019).

According to Vosoughi's research, false news is produced in such a way as to

cause information disorder and unjustified information. The Philippines is one of the

countries where the infodemic is endemic. This task will serve as a wake-up call for all

social media users, who must be critical and aware enough to combat the infodemic by

fact-checking.

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 The study of Philippine COVID-19 infodemic response task force which is

composed of various volunteers and representatives from national government agencies,

development partners such as WHO and UNICEF Philippines, media and public affairs

representatives, and the academe, with the Department of Health (DOH). They found out

that there must be a task force who is in-charge of tracking, addressing, and managing all

infodemic related to COVID-19.

3. Methodology

3.1 Study Design

This study focused on identifying overaching public health issue using qualitative

research pertaining on identifying infodemic situations or published articles. Analysing

legal responses against infodemic during the pandemic and evaluating jurisprudence

relating to infodemic.

3.2 Data Gathering

With the onset of COVID-19 pandemic, social media has rapidly become a

crucial communication tool for information generation, dissemination, and consumption.

In this scoping review, the researcher selected and examined peer-reviewed empirical

studies relating to COVID-19 and social media during the first outbreak from November,

2019 to November, 2020. From an analysis of studies, it was identified public security

concerning the role of online social media platforms and COVID-19.

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3.3 Treatment of Data

Through evaluation and analysing published journals, review emphasises the

paucity of studies on the application of machine learning on data from COVID-19 related

social media. It is found that COVID-19 information in social media has a crucial role in

disseminating health information. Through evaluating data and imperative

responses ,researcher propose a legal action to combat infodemic.

3.4 Infodemic in the Philippines

This article aims to uncover links between the spread of fake news on social

media and legislative reactions in the Philippines. As a result, humans are not exempted

to the threat posed by the COVID 19 pandemic. According to health experts around the

world. This contagious virus can infect even wealthy or middle-class persons. However,

questions have been raised about why street beggars are not infected with COVID-19.

This is one of the reasons why many people are skeptical of the virus's existence. Some

argue that the exposure of some beggars in their daily lives and constant contact with

bacteria’s helps them fight the virus. That is also why their immune system is so strong.

There are also claims that, it is planned by the oligarchs or capitalists. There is also the

argument that it is not about health, but about how they make money from the virus

spread.

However, certain health experts are always telling people that COVID-19 is real

and not a hoax. According to Dr. Endymion Tan, the fact that COVID-19 is caused by a

virus suggests that it is neither a joke or a hearsay. If this virus cannot be cured, it may be

the root cause of infections such as cough, runny nose, or acute polmonia. Because of

these concepts, it is clear that not only COVID 19 is spreading, but also erroneous

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information about the COVID 19 pandemic response is widely disseminated. But first and

foremost, why is misinformation, disinformation, and conspiracy theory so prevalent?

According to the professor, at the University of Massachusetts, conspiracy theory is

defined as the a theory that explains an event or situation as the result of a secret plan and

typically no supported evidence.

According to the Department of Health spokesperson Ma. Rosario Vergiere, there

is no evidence or even a study that eating bananas will prevent the transmission or a

person from having a COVID 19. She went on to say that steam inhalation causes nasal

discharge, which can spread illnesses to others by sniffing or coughing. Lawrence

Balbuena, a health practitioner from the United States, has 20 years of experience in the

field. He claims that because of the infodemic, he is convinced that COVID-19 is not

true. He also stated that there is information on the internet that the government just want

to control human. There was also an instance where misinformation convinced him that

COVID is similar to the flu. But all his question answered when he tested positive for

COVID-19 and was brought to the hospital due to difficulty breathing.

As a result, misinformation or an infodemic is spreading quickly in the

Philippines, and it is anchored in social media. The Philippines has one of the highest

rates of internet usage in the world. Furthermore, the Philippines is one of the countries

that has been exposed in erroneous information on the internet. According to the PEW

Research Center, the common root of the infodemic is a lack of fact checking. Dr. David

Guido of Octa Research stated that, disinformation is not based on hard research, and

most people do not practice fact checking from one source to another. The faster

disinformation spreads, the faster conspiracy theories grow.

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3.5 Conspiracy theory during pandemic

There is a conspiracy theory that eating garlic and bananas or even steam

inhalation is an alternative treatment for COVID-19 positive patients. According to

Cebu's current governor, there is a positive patient of COVID-19, who tried steam

inhalation and is being treated. However, according to the World Health Organization

(WHO, 2020), salt water steam will not prevent covid 19, wherein extreme hot steam

might be detrimental due to the risk of burn injury. In addition, the Department of Health

(DOH, 2020) responded to the widely circulated report that consuming garlic can help

avoid infection with the new Coronavirus. Garlic is a nutritious food that may have

antibacterial qualities. However, there is no evidence from the present outbreak that

eating garlic protects against the new coronavirus.

The whole nation around the earth are still fighting the pandemic on how to curve

the infections. There are many conspiracy theories floating around the world, and they

spread via media platforms and social media platforms. A vaccine laboratory in the

United States was forced to close by vaccine activists. In Europe, cell towers were turned

off and burned because people believed that launching 5G wireless signals was the source

of infections.

Also, there is a conspiracy theory in the Philippines that when we have the

vaccine in our body the government will track us wherever we go, the government can

monitor what we are doing. But it is not based on any evidence at all.

Until now the WHO is afraid of the spread of infodemic. Dr. Tedros Adhanom

Ghebreyesus as director general of WHO says, “We’re not just fighting an epedemic, we

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are fighting an infodemic. Fake news spreads faster and more easily that this virus and it’s

just as dangerous”. According to Dr. Jonnathan Ong, let us be critical to find the real

enemy during the pandemic. he added that, “it’s very easy to try to conjure on enemy and

try to identify an evil enemy that’s behind everything wrong that’s going on right now.

3.6 The impact of social media during COVID-19

3.6.1 Social Media

The term social media refers to a computer-based technology that facilitates the

sharing of ideas, thoughts, and information through virtual networks and communities.

3.6.2 Social Media during pandemic

Social media during pandemic is already one of the primary venues of social

activity for billions of people who could no longer meet and talk in person, naturally

became a primary source for news. In this environment, misinformation and

disinformation has flourished exceedingly. Millions of people suffers not only for

financial aspect but also suffers health problem which anxiety triggered during the

pandemic.

3.6.3 Feeding confusion

Internet users who share memes, videos or photos that make fun of the virus, even

without any harmful intent, also risk spreading misinformation. There is a danger of

fuelling panic and confusion in the population. People no longer know who to trust and

become more vulnerable to manipulation and cybercrime.

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4. Data Information
According to Rapid Information Communication and Accountability Assessment

(RICAA) to better understand communities understanding of the pandemic and

information needs. Out of 1,460 respondents, 62% identified rumors and false

information related to the CIVID-19 pandemic, most commonly on the nature of the

coronavirus, possible cure, and rules regarding the imposition of lockdown and physical

distancing in their communities. A study by Islam et al. (2020) shows that about 800

people across 87 countries died and nearly 5,900 others were hospitalized after following

fake cures of COVID-19 spread on social media between 21 January 2020 and 5 April

2020. Today, social media has matured significantly, and yet, it is getting more difficult to

identify accurate and useful information, to communicate fairly, and to build trust. Prior

to the outbreak of COVID-19, researchers raised concerns about the prevalence of false

information on social media. During the pandemic Asian country promulgated its

different laws to combat infodemic. It is also deemed the most dynamic region with

regard to legislation on anti-fake news during the time of the COVID-19 outbreak. Led by

the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) at the Poynter Institute in Florida, USA,

the #CoronaVirusFacts Alliance unites more than 100 fact-checkers around the globe in

publishing, sharing, and translating facts surrounding the coronavirus. Launched in

January 2020, the Alliance is presented as the largest collaborative project ever launched

in the fact-checking world.

Based on the infodemic risk index, Singapore is ranked first out of 83 countries

for the most reliable and accurate information shared on Twitter. The risk indexes of

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Malaysia and the Philippines also remain relatively low for most of the observed periods.

These three countries demonstrate the highest news reliability calculated with respect to

messages in the country’s native language. Meanwhile, the rest of the countries,

especially Indonesia and Vietnam, face a much higher risk of unreliable and low-quality

information, while demonstrating the lowest news reliability concerning messages written

in local languages. In the Philippines, a false health graphic found in hundreds of posts

encouraged people to gargle salt with water to cure the disease. Videos of a Filipino

netizen that accumulated 2.5 million views and more than 135,000 shares insisted on

killing the virus by drinking warm salt water (VERA Files, 2020).

Facebook reported that 88.8% of all the removals related to hate speech and

disinformation in the last quarter was detected by AI (Facebook, 2020). Raising the

threshold of automation in content moderation gives us insights into the future, as many

of these temporary measures may turn into permanent features once tested during a crisis.

Figure 1. Information disorder in Southeast Asia. (Author’s compilation;

CoronaVirusFacts Alliance, 2020).

This graph depicts the number of verified news stories in the Philippines during

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the pandemic. Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram are the most popular social media

platforms. However, during the pandemic, the association of fact-checkers debunked a lot

of fake news. A lot of the news that is circulating on social media is false.

In Indonesia, ubiquitous posts on social media claimed that COVID-19 could be

treated by an herbal combination of curcumin, ginger, and other ingredients, which,

coincidently, are also the main ingredients of a Jamu drink (Wijaya, 2020). Some

Facebook posts found in Thailand and Indonesia claimed that smoking could protect

people from the virus. Meanwhile, in the Philippines, a screenshot showing a photo of a

cannabis plant with the headline “Breaking News: Weed Kills Coronavirus” circulated on

Facebook with 12,500 shares, more than 3,700 reactions, and 723 comments, as of 18

February (CoronaVirusFacts Alliance, 2020). Nutrition scammers or unscrupulous

pharmaceutical companies cash in on such online promotions proclaiming the benefits of

certain products in preventing or curing COVID-19. The stock of companies producing or

trading in such products could rise accordingly in value. In the Philippines, an

advertisement for a vitamin supplement named Honey-C was published on Facebook on

31 March 2020 and became widely shared. The supplement was advertised as an

immunity-boosting agent against COVID-19, complemented with an approval from the

Philippine Food and Drug Administration. However, this product was later confirmed as

unregistered and the accompanying ad deemed deceptive marketing related to COVID-19.

The manufacturers of the product were requested by the regulatory agency to remove the

misleading advertisements, on the penalty of sanctions (AFP Philippines, 2020).

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 Figure 2. Content classification of Information disorder in Southeast Asia.
(Author’s compilation; CoronaVirusFacts Alliance, 2020).

This figure shows content classification of information disorder in Southeast Asia.

This figure only focused on the Philippine content classification. Which contains

information related in symptoms, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment measures which is

32% only. Government’s actions and regulations is 25%. On the other hand, false and

misleading statistics contains 11%. And the origins of the information only 5%. Might as

well in political, religion, ethnic fake news targeted contains 11%. Also, Disinformation

affect the environment, economic and health impacts mostly 5%.

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4.1 Covid-19 infodemic response in the Philippines
4.2 Legal responses to fight Infodemics in the Philippines

A. Law and punishment

China came out on top in terms of how the government will not hesitate to punish

those who create and spread false information during the outbreak. Citizens were

repeatedly reminded of the arsenal of laws available to prosecute those found guilty of

such acts. Criminal prosecutions related to the outbreak were made public on a regular

basis. According to news reports, the number of cases tried for crimes related to false

information in China more than doubled between the 20th and 27th of February, with

everyone found guilty and prosecuted. The Singapore government similarly showed that it

will not resist the use of law. Under the country’s Protection from Online Falsehoods and

Manipulation Act (POFMA), no less than four parties were issued informational

correction orders for spreading online falsehoods within the first two months of the

outbreak. In an unprecedented move, POFMA exemptions for internet intermediaries

were promptly lifted – requiring Google, Facebook, Baidu and Twitter to comply with

POFMA directions to immediately correct cases of misinformation being spread on their

platforms.

In the Philippines, with the enactment of Republic Act (R.A.) 11469 otherwise

known as the “Bayanihan to Heal as One Act” in the Country, a lot of discussions were

focused on the constitutionality of Section 6 (f) of said law which penalizes the creation,

perpetration or spreading of “false information” regarding the COVID-19 crisis.

“Section 6. Penalties. – In addition to acts or omissions already penalized by

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existing laws, the following offenses shall be punishable… xxx (f) Individuals or groups

creating, perpetrating, or spreading false information regarding the COVID-19 crisis on

social media and other platforms, such information having no valid or beneficial effect on

the population, and are clearly geared to promote chaos, panic, anarchy, fear, or

confusion; and those participating in cyber incidents that make us or take advantage of the

current crisis situation to prey on the public through scams, phishing, fraudulent emails,

or other similar acts xxx".

Republic Act 10175 Anti-Cybercrime Law. Through this law it will combat false

information, unverified reports and other forms of disinformation that may affect overall

unified response to the COVID-19 pandemic is punishable by this law. Citizens caught

peddling fake news could be charged for violating this law. Neil Walsh, Chief,

Cybercrime and Anti-Money Laundering Section stated that in times of crises, cyber

security is critically important to secure the important information in hospital, as regards

that hospital or the health agencies creates correct information, having cyber crime law it

will attest fraud information.

Congress made a last-minute amendment to the Bayanihan to Heal as One Law

which punishes eight acts including the spreading of fake and alarming information about

COVID-19. Under Section 6, all eight acts are punished by either 2 months in prison or

up to P1 million in fines or both (Rappler, 2020).

Study shows different governments around the world, priority COVID-19 actions

included measures that reflected the heightened importance of combating fake news, such

as (a) criminalizing malicious coronavirus falsehood (Hungary, South Africa), (b)

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establishing special units to combat disinformation (e.g., EU, UK), and (c) providing

guidance to social media companies on taking down contentious pandemic content (e.g.,

India). To counter the “infodemic,” 18 countries have added counter-measures via

decrees and emergency legislation.

In the Philippines, Cebu artist jailed for allegedly spreading fake news on

COVID-19. A poet and scriptwriter was arrested for allegedly spreading false information

on the alleged surge of coronavirus disease cases in Cebu. Beltran posted on her

Facebook account that more than 9,000 people have been infected with COVID-19 in

Sitio Zapatera, Barangay Luz in Cebu City. The truth is, as what DOH reported, only 163

cases of COVID-19, of which only 136 are from Sitio Zapatera in Barangay Luz. On the

other hand, Malacañan Palace stated that there are five charged over fake news during

pandemic. Citing information from the Philippine National Police (PNP), Roque said five

persons were charged for unlawful use of publication and unlawful utterances under the

Bayanihan to Heal as One Act and for declaring unlawful rumor mongering and spreading

false information under the Cybercrime Prevention act of 2012. After this incidence,

authorities have arrested 32 people across the country for allegedly spreading fake news

about the coronavirus disease on social media.

Solutions against infodemic

Social solution

Study shows that there should be infodemic management that uses evidence-based

analysis and approaches to manage the infodemic and reduce its impact on health

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behaviors during health emergencies. Infodemic management aims to enable good health

practices through 4 types of activities: 1.) Listening to community concerns and

questions, 2.) Promoting understanding of risk and health expert advice, 3.) Building

resilience to misinformation, 4.) Engaging and empowering communities to take positive

action.

Figure 3. Source (Naffi, 2020) 5 ways to stop infodemic the increasing misinformation
about coronavirus. The conversation.

This image depicts an infodemic response via social solution; this information

will also assist social media users in better understanding how the information ecosystem

operates on the social media platform. It is advised to listen in health authorities or front

liners based on empirical data. It can manage the infodemic by combating its uncertain

information by implementing the four categories of health practices activities. People

must listen to how the community is doing, seek guidance from front-line personnel or

health experts, understand how to correct disinformation, and engage and empower

communities to deal with any unsettling news.

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Social responsibility and education

Beyond hardline authoritative measures, the governments of Singapore and China

have also called for support from individuals and local communities to battle against the

information epidemic as one. In Singapore, top state figures including the President and

Prime Minister have repeatedly reminded people of the great service they are performing

for other Singaporeans by being socially responsible and by not spreading rumors about

the coronavirus. As in China, Singapore's leaders have constantly urged everyone to play

their part to halt fear mongering by not speculating on unofficial information. Schools

and teachers have been roped in to support these socially-driven interventions. Across

Singapore, programmes were implemented as part of character and citizenship education

to teach the importance of verifying the authenticity of information related to the

coronavirus. In China, news reports have described how teachers have written to their

students to remind them of other students whose parents had died or were in quarantine,

and how they should show care for their friends by not creating panic and spreading

rumors about the coronavirus. In the Philippines, all school departments are emphasizing

the importance of becoming a true Filipino in order to become more resilient during

pandemics. In addition, the government is advising Filipinos to be more cautious in

accepting pandemic-related information.

Practical solution

Countering misinformation

The research shows that, it must have a sense of initiative to encounter infodemic

by using its social media outlets by looking its veracity. Whether it is certain or uncertain

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information. This knowledge should prompt decision-makers to devise ways to ensure

pandemic safety and to create solution that give people a sense of control. Providing such

solutions can reduce problem which is infodemic. Several measures have been put in

place to curb the circulation of fake news. Asian countries did not hesitate to enforce

criminal prosecutions related to the COVID-19 infodemic. In Québec, fact-checking

services such as the Rumor Detector are available to the public. The WHO uses its

existing network called EPI-WIN to track down misinformation in several languages. It

also asks technology giants to filter out false news and promote information from credible

sources. Google removes misleading information about COVID-19 from YouTube,

Google Maps, its development platforms such as Play, and in advertisements.

Technological slolution

Fact-checking or Media detection of infodemics

The Oxford Dictionary describes fact-checking as a process seeking to investigate

an issue in order to verify the facts.

Much of the discourse on fakenews these days conflates three notions:

misinformation, disinformation and mal-information. Twitter verifies, among other

things, accounts that are legitimate sources of information on COVID-19 and monitors

conversations to guarantee that the keywords searched for on the virus allow access to

reliable information. WHO, has also launched a health alert on WhatsApp and a chat box

on Facebook Messenger to provide accurate information about the virus. The UN is also

making every effort to combat misinformation and cyber-fraudsters who are taking

advantage of the crisis. The United Nations Development Program supports the

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#CoronaVirusFacts Alliance, which brings together more than 100 fact-checkers from

over 45 countries in the International Fact-Checking Network.

Fact-checking and rational debate are essential to combat the COVID-19 related

infodemic, but these strategies can have adverse effects. A study on the Zika virus

showed that attempts to flush out misinformation did not reduce misconceptions about

the virus, but rather reduced people’s confidence in the accuracy of WHO’s epidemic

information. One of the reasons suggested is that some people prefer easy explanations to

digesting complicated information in a chaotic environment when little accurate

information on the sources of the new threat and how to fight against.

However, combating misinformation in the digital age is everyone's job. We can

always restrict the impact of fake news while trying to debunk it. Here are five measures

to prevent the spread of misinformation:

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Figure 4. Source (Naffi 2020) 5 ways to stop infodemic the increasing misinformation
about coronavirus. The conversation.

This figure tells us, 1.) Be critical when you look at social media, 2.) Don’t leave

false information in your online networks. You can politely ask the person who shared it

to remove it, 3.) Report the false information to the platform administrators, 4.) When in

doubt, take the time to verify the shared information and 5.) Make more noise than people

who share false information.

On the other hand, you and your network will be less vulnerable to the perils of the

infodemic if you make these basic gestures and share credible information on a regular

basis. Users of social media are spending more time online than ever before.

C.2 Correctional action and advisory

Singapore has set a precedent by publishing advisories in news outlets to dispel

rumors and disinformation, as well as compelling anyone found to have broken the

POFMA to publicly address their falsehoods online. Singapore was closely followed by

South Korea, which primarily concentrated on dispelling myths through news outlets in

the form of FAQs and interviews with experts, government officials, and health officials.

Singapore also demonstrated how a whole-of-government collaboration involving five

separate ministries was able to create informational advisories accessible to different

segments of society via diverse platforms – from official fact-checking sites to

government-owned Facebook and Instagram pages, government-driven message push

channels in WhatsApp, and digital display panels in residential areas. Same as here in the

Philippines, government trying to elucidate fake news using fact-checkers outlet.

Commonly, in the Philippines most of the media outlets are trying to fact-check news that

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is not clear and correct fake news.

Do we need more Legislation?

Like the pandemic itself, the digital outbreak of disinformation is global. Yet the

legal responses and temporary measures put forward so far show local solutions are only

part of the answer. The remedy for pervasive online falsehood—trust in science and

verified sources—comes mediated through accurate reporting and informed public

debates. Since the coronavirus outbreak started, social media have been both the culprits

of and antidotes to disinformation. Specific actions taken during the pandemic build on

existing disinformation counter-measures around the world, many of which have not

proven their effectiveness.

Imposing jailtime for coronavirus disinformation has been a common in several

countries. Backed by the two-thirds majority of his party, the Hungarian Prime Minister

Viktor Orbán obtained the power to rule by decree during an extended national state of

emergency and passed a new law criminalizing “false” or “distorted” COVID-19

information, with penalties involving hefty fines and up to 5 years in prison. Covertly,

this law quashes public scrutiny related to measures taken by the government to address

the pandemic, as it uses broad provisions without time limits (Polyak, 2020). Similar

provisions were passed in Bolivia, where the decree no. 4200 issued by the Añez interim

government on 25 March contained the following article: “individuals who incite non-

compliance with this decree or misinform or cause uncertainty to the population will be

subject to criminal charges for crimes against public health” (Art. 13-2), with penalties in

fines and jail time ranging from 1 to 10 years (CPJ, 2020). In South Africa, under the

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Disaster Management Act 2002, section 11(5) made it an offense penalized by fine or

imprisonment for 6 months (or both) to “publish a statement through any medium with

the intention to deceive about a narrow range of information related to the transmission of

the virus, personal infection status and government measures to address the pandemic.”

Incentives and jail time must be used to support the laws that are currently in place. The

purpose of the laws is to prevent disinformation on social media platforms. The

government should raise the sentence time of the criminal who is disseminating fake

news through a jail time and incentive campaign. Incentivize citizens who can disclose

unusual information that causes concern.

Results

The result of the study showed also that certain restriction cause by infodemic

consequently may cause serious problems in accepting reliable information. From this

perspective, it seems extremely important to understand which restrictions should be

taken and how they can be dealt with in order to reduce the disinformation associated

with them. Congress promulgated the act in view of the serious health threats and

disruptions posed by COVID-19 on the lives and livelihoods of people and the economy

as a whole (Section 2). In fact, the WHO on 11 March 2020 has already characterized

COVID-19 as a pandemic and called on all countries to take urgent and agressive action

to combat infodemic. On the basis of Republic Act (R.A.) 11469 otherwise known as the

“Bayanihan to Heal as One Act”. This Act will counter disinformation that bring chaos to

the lives of the people. Which cause by the massive disinformation that affect the lives of

people. However, legal responses to combat the infodemic is one of the cure to lessen the

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infodemic. There are people arrested by spreading fake information online, some of them

put in jail and pay for hefty fines. By fact-checking, people are encourage to do social

solution, practical solution and technological solution to combat infodemic which can

help also to social media users to not be deceived by fake news that is circulating in social

media platform.

As a result, there are occasions where some matters are not clearly resolved due to

a lack of action from the government. It was found on the study which is handed by

RICAA, out of 1,460 respondents, there are 62% identified rumors and false information

related to the CIVID-19 pandemic, most of it related to coronavirus cure and imposition

of orders that is uncertain. It was found also on Islam et al. (2020) study shows that about

800 people across 87 countries died and nearly 5,900 others were hospitalized after

following fake cures of COVID-19 spread on social media between 21 January 2020 and

5 April 2020. Based on the infodemic risk index, Singapore is ranked first out of 83

countries for the most reliable and accurate information shared on Twitter. The risk

indexes of Malaysia and the Philippines also remain relatively low for most of the

observed periods. This study found that, there are some problem in the existing law that

fights infodemic. It demonstrates that there are known incidents of anonymous people

distributing fake news online, and laws designed to combat the epidemic cannot be used

to penalize fake news peddlers. Furthermore, it was discovered that in order to combat the

infodemic, the government must deploy more manpower to easily attest disinformation.

This allows social media users to simply handle the infodemic. For example, if there is

circulating questionable material containing COVID-19 information, the guidelines will

indicate on the Facebook outlet whether the information must be published or must be

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updated first before being uploaded online. Furthermore, the government is encouraged to

establish more criteria to restrict fraudulent news including false information concerning

COVID-19.

A Zika virus study found that efforts to debunk disinformation did not lessen

misconceptions about the virus, but rather decreased people's trust in the authenticity of

WHO's epidemic information. Social media sites play an important role in the COVID-19

infodemic and should implement evidence-based strategies to reduce misinformation on

their platforms.

Conclusion

Before writing, uploading, sharing, or forwarding any communication, this study

will teach you how to resist the infodemic and its legal implications. One should avoid

forwarding any coronavirus-related messages without first verifying them, especially in

this age of infodemic, which the World Health Organization defines as an abundance of

information, some of which is accurate and some of which is not, making it difficult for

people to find trustworthy sources and reliable guidance when they need it. Also, the

study shows that the law enforcement agencies are monitoring such posts on social media

platforms and can land fake news peddler in jail. Fact-checking news material in this day

and age is highly recommended for all social media users in order to avoid becoming an

infodemic victim.

The Department of Health in the Philippines is constantly advising citizens to seek

alternative sources on sites that do not filter disputed information. Despite their

tremendous traffic, platforms owned by American giants such as Facebook, Google,

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Microsoft, and Twitter do not span the entire globe, and a hoax on encrypted messaging

services can go viral in a matter of hours.

During the COVID-19 crisis, stronger national measures arose, and technology

corporations gained increasing authority as intermediaries screening and removing

content, in many circumstances automatically. The researcher suggest that the

government should incentivise concerned citizens who can report disinformation, and that

the government should also extend the jail time of the alleged offender for distributing

false information during the pandemic.

Government instructions provided to large social media platforms aimed at

coronavirus disinformation usually asked them to take immediate action to remove or

delete false or malicious content placed on their sites. Social media platforms heavily rely

on artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to control the public realm in compliance with

stricter limits imposed by various governments or altered community guidelines.

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