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2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic marked a turning point in peoples’ information consumption habits.
In an environment of extreme enforced isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, people have increasingly been compelled to turn to online sources for information and guidance. Online news consumption rose considerably as quarantines began.
Social media, already one of the primary venues of social activity for millions 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 enormously.
For tens of millions, they face not only the effects on long term social isolation, but also the economic anxiety as they face an uncertain future in a fast-changing economy that threatens to leave many behind.
All of these factors have combined to create a “perfect storm” which is making more people vulnerable to disinformation campaigns.
These “campaigns” are a threat to our democracies and our way of life. They create social unrest, alarmism, disbelief, chaos and undermine public security eroding the global standing of liberal democracies. What could be the role of the law enforcement agencies, governments and the European Union? Are they sufficient aware of these menaces? Are they already tackling these challenges? In this paper we will try to answer those questions and propose some policy actions.