Microsoft Starts Sponsoring Anti-Fake News Browser Extension

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - An internet browser extension developed by NewsGuard Technologies that allows users to gauge the accuracy of online news reports is available for free due to a sponsorship agreement that was announced by Microsoft Vice President for Customer Security & Trust Tom Burt on Thursday.
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"We are proud to sponsor NewsGuard’s new browser extension, which can be downloaded free of charge," Burt said in a blog post. "Enhancing digital media literacy and transparency will be a powerful tool to reduce the impact of disinformation campaigns."

The release noted that the power and anonymity of information technology and social media have created an asymmetric threat that foreign adversaries are using to corrupt democratic processes.

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NewsGuard employs analysts review online news sites, creating a Red/Green Reliability Rating based on nine journalistic integrity criteria, the release explained.

The system does not preclude access to any news content, which would conflict with free speech principles, but empower readers with additional information on the source and reliability of content that they read and/or share, according to the release.

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