The Russia-Ukraine war continues, and several global tech companies are updating their terms to do business with Russia. Social media giants like Meta, Twitter, ByteDance’s TikTok, and more are under immense pressure to curb the spread of misinformation and even help their affected employees. Similarly, social media platforms remain equally crucial for families on either side, affected by war. These platforms are also a great tool driving other governments’ attention when students or citizens are stranded in Ukraine. Here’s a quick look at what social media giants are doing amid the war and who’s impacted the most.
Meta amid Russia-Ukraine War
Meta (formerly) has announced several measures amid the Russia-Ukraine war. The company is perhaps being watched the most since its services – Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp remain highly popular worldwide. End of last month, Russia announced that it is limiting access to Facebook after the company refused to remove labels from state-owned channels and comply with the country’s order to stop fact-checkers. However, a few days ago, Facebook got banned in Russia after failing to comply with the government’s order and restricting state-owned media channels.
Meta’s head of global affairs, Nick Clegg, informed that the company would do everything to restore its services. In a post, Clegg said, “Soon millions of ordinary Russians will find themselves cut off from reliable information, deprived of their everyday ways of connecting with family and friends and silenced from speaking out".
Meanwhile, to protect Ukrainians, the company has introduced Facebook “lock profile" tool for everyone that lets users lock profile info from visitors. Users can access photos, posts, and so on only if they are added on Facebook as a ‘friend’.
Meta-owned WhatsApp also shared a series of key points to help its users in Ukraine. The company suggests users enable two-step verification and fact-check forwarded posts. Users can also use Disappearing Mode, which deletes messages after 24 hours automatically. It could add an extra layer of privacy.
Twitter Amid Russia-Ukraine War
Twitter is a powerful tool that many country heads and key figures use to communicate with masses. Similar to Meta’s Facebook, Twitter had said its platform was restricted for some users in Russia. The social media giant had earlier said it is aware of the situation and working to keep its services “safe and accessible". Some reports suggest the service is banned but there’s no clarity yet.
Twitter had also stated that the company would comply with the European Union’s sanctions on Russian state-affiliated media RT and Sputnik.
Outside the EU, the platform would continue to show the state-affiliated media outlets with warning labels. However, their visibility among users may reduce.
TikTok Amid Russia-Ukraine War
TikTok remains banned in India due to its links to China; however, the platform is highly popular among users globally. The short-video platform has a number of content creators from Russia who are also popular on Instagram and other platforms.
Russia’s communications regulator had demanded TikTok stop including military-related content in ‘recommended posts’ for minors. Recently, TikTok said it would suspend live-streaming and the uploading of videos to its platform following a new media law signed by Russian President Vladamir Putin. As per the new law, anyone could get jail terms of up to 15 years for spreading “fake news". The law mainly targets global media outlets as reporters operating in Russia can also get a long jail term if the government deems its content fake. BBC, Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC), Bloomberg News, and CBS News said they would stop broadcasting in Russia.
YouTube Amid Russia-Ukraine War
Speaking of video content, YouTube has also announced a number of measures to ensure safety of its users amid war between the two countries. End of last month, the Alphabet-owned platform and Google’s sister brand said it barred Russian state-owned media outlet RT and other Russian channels from receiving money for advertisements.
YouTube also confirmed that videos from Russian creators will come up less often in recommendations. Meanwhile, Google started removing user-submitted locations within the borders of Russia on Google Maps. The State Special Communications Service of Ukraine had claimed that Google Maps “labels" were being used by Russia’s military “another fake."
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Other services
Earlier this week, Netflix announced that it temporarily stopped future projects and acquisitions in Russia amid the war with Ukraine. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy had pledged logistics capability to get supplies in affected areas and cybersecurity expertise to Ukraine. Most importantly, Elon Musk’s SpaceX venture Starlink has activated satellite internet service in Ukraine to help citizens in affected areas.
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