Browsing Tag

VERIFICATION

TikTok plans stricter age verification across Europe amid safety push

TikTok will begin rolling out new age-detection technology across Europe in the coming weeks, the company said, as the ByteDance-owned platform faces mounting regulatory pressure to better identify and remove accounts belonging to children under 13. The previously unreported system follows a year-long pilot in Europe and is designed to strengthen enforcement of TikTok’s minimum-age rules without resorting to blanket, intrusive checks. The company said the tool analyses profile information, posted videos and behavioral…

Verification: Obama Did Not Relocate 70,000 Somalis to Minnesota

Over the course of Barack Obama's presidency, roughly 54,000 Somali refugees found new homes in the United States, a far cry from the widely circulated but inaccurate claim that he relocated 70,000 Somalis to Minnesota. Contrary to some eyebrow-raising social media posts, this was not a cunning plan to manipulate future elections in favor of Ilhan Omar, the Somali-American Congresswoman representing Minnesota. Around the time of the U.S. presidential election on November 5th, messages floating around Facebook declared,…

VERIFICATION: Circulating Posts in Ethiopia Spread Misleading Information About Horn of Africa Tensions

A Facebook post, emerging on September 18, 2024, surpassed viral status with over 800 shares. It flaunts a TikTok video captioned in Amharic, suggesting: "Abiy is bursting with joy." The name "Abiy" references Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed. Meanwhile, the caption hints at Egypt being "wrecked." "Ethiopia's foes are in a panic," the video narrator claims. "Rumors swirling from Beijing—Xi Jinping’s domain—suggest Ethiopia's got its hands on the elusive J10 fighter jet." This aircraft is notable for slipping past…