Private Messaging Public Harms: Disinformation and Online Harms on Private Messaging Platforms in Canada

Executive Summary

More than eight in ten people in Canada use online private messaging platforms, such as Messenger, WhatsApp and Snapchat; and over half are receiving messages about the news or current events at least weekly. This growing vector for news is coming under increased scrutiny, as evidence from jurisdictions around the world reveal private messaging apps’ role in spreading disinformation and a broad range of already-illegal materials, including hate speech, inciting violence, cybercrime, sexual abuse and child sexual exploitation materials.

The spread of disinformation and other online harms poses risks for social cohesion, public safety and democracy; and, as a result, has raised calls for technical and regulatory changes. At the same time, concerns have also been raised regarding over-censorship of content and that any such changes may negatively impact freedoms and rights, particularly the right to free expression. Adding to the complexity, cybersecurity and privacy experts fear that police and security agencies may use online harms to justify the weakening of encryption technologies used by many messaging apps, allowing them access to message content, and thus posing significant implications for privacy rights and civil liberties.

To date, Canadian regulatory proposals have focused largely on social media content that remains publicly accessible. The purpose of this report is to explore the role of private messaging in information ecosystems in Canada, including Canadians’ use of messaging apps; their exposure to disinformation and other online harms; and potential policy and technical approaches to mitigate potential harms.

A representative survey in March 2020 of 2,500 people in Canada found that:

• 46% report receiving private messages that they suspect are false at least monthly;
• 39% report receiving private messages that they initially believe to be true, but later find out are false, at least monthly;
• 26% report receiving messages containing hate speech at least monthly, with rates higher among people of colour;
• A majority have about the same level of trust in news that they receive through messaging apps as they do in news from websites, television or social media;
• Those who use private messages as a news source report seeing false information more frequently, with a majority of Telegram and WeChat users receiving false information at least weekly; and
• Those who believe in COVID-19 conspiracy theories are more likely to regularly receive news through private messages (77% more likely to get news through WhatsApp and 34% more likely to get news through Facebook Messenger).

Against this backdrop, messaging platforms and some governments around the world have taken some steps in an attempt to mitigate disinformation and other online harms, including:

• Labels and limits on message forwarding to create more friction for messages to go ‘viral’;
• Limits on group size to reduce message reach;
• Mechanisms to enable users to report harmful content to moderators; and
• Features to encourage users to verify information they receive.

We conclude with three recommendations for the Government of Canada to better
understand and mitigate these complex challenges:

1. Invest in research and innovation specific to disinformation and other online harms on private messaging platforms in Canada;
2. Require transparency from large online platforms to better understand online harms through private messaging; and
3. Make investments in policy-informed digital literacy efforts that build resilience
   to disinformation through private messaging platforms.