Tag Archives: EU DisinfoLab

Did WEF just order ICANN to seize website domains?!

Did the WEF just order ICANN to seize website domains that publish “non-mainstream content”?! Take a look at the viral claim, and find out what the facts really are!

 

Claim : WEF Orders ICANN To Seize Website Domains!

People are sharing an article (archive) by The People’s Voice (formerly NewsPunch), which claimed that WEF just ordered ICANN to seize website domains that publish “non-mainstream content”!

Here is an excerpt of the long and (intentionally?) confusing article. Feel free to skip to the next section for the facts!

WEF Orders ICANN To Seize Website Domains That Publish ‘Non-Mainstream Content’

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has ordered the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to wage “war on conspiracy theorists” by seizing domains of websites that publish “non-mainstream content” online.

Recommended : Did WEF order governments to declare Bird Flu Martial Law?!

 

Truth : WEF Did Not Order ICANN To Seize Website Domains!

This is yet another example of fake news created / promoted by The People’s Voice, and here are the reasons why…

Fact #1 : WEF Did Not Order ICANN To Seize Website Domains!

Let me start by simply pointing out that the World Economic Forum (WEF) did not order ICANN to seize website domains for posting disinformation and/or “non-mainstream content”.

If that actually happened, it would have been reported all over the world. Yet no legitimate media report it – that’s because it never happened.

Unsurprisingly, The People’s Voice did not provide any actual evidence to back up its claim that the WEF ordered ICANN to seize website domains for posting “non-mainstream content”!

Fact #2 : EU DisinfoLab Did Not Order ICANN To Seize Website Domains

The People’s Voice article appears to be based around the EU DisinfoLab article called “Of Domain Names And Ducks“. Interestingly, it did not include a link to the article…

Perhaps that’s because anyone reading it would immediately see that  EU DisinfoLab itself did not order ICANN to seize website domains for posting “non-mainstream content”, or disinformation!

Nowhere in its article did EU DisinfoLab call upon ICANN to seize website domains for any reason. In fact, its article specifically points out that it “makes a lot of sense” that ICANN is “unwilling to regulate content“!

Its article also pointed out that ICANN ran a security operation called DNSTICR (Domain Name System Threat Information Collection and Reporting) to identify websites involving in phishing attacks and spreading malware, and instead of seizing those domains, it merely informed the domain registrars, and left it to the domain registrars to take action based on local laws, terms of service, etc.

In short – EU DisinfoLab too did not order ICANN to seize website domains for any reason.

Recommended : Was WEF Founder Klaus Schwab Just Hospitalised?!

Fact #3 : EU DisinfoLab Article Was About Doppelgänger Websites

I should also point out that the EU DisinfoLab article was referring specifically to Doppelgänger websites, which are websites that deceptively mimic real news websites in order to spread disinformation.

Basically, these websites attempt to look like genuine news websites (for example, CNN or BBC), with similar domains (for example, CNNNews.com or BBCNews.org), to trick people into believing fake content or disinformation.

This is completely different from websites that produce “non-mainstream content”. It doesn’t even address websites that consistently produce fake news, like The People’s Voice, but do not attempt to masquerade as genuine news websites.

Fact #4 : No Evidence EU DisinfoLab Is Not Independent

The People’s Voice article suggested that EU DisinfoLab is not independent because it receives funding from the WEF and the Open Society Foundations.

While that may be possible, there is no actual evidence that EU DisinfoLab received funding from the WEF or Open Society Foundations.

While EU DisinfoLab (EUDL) receives funding from private and public sources, its fundraising policy only allows contributions from sources that meet these criteria:

• Avoid the creation of a perception of bias or actual bias that would undermine EUDL reputation or credibility.
• Impose no compromise to the effectiveness and objectivity of EUDL’s work.
• The funding source should not present any other risk to the reputation and mission of the organisation and support the implementation of EUDL’s mission and core activities without condition

In addition, EUDL also has an internal alert system to allow employees to report directly to its Board of Directors any suspicion of the organisation’s independence being altered.

Recommended : Did WHO Unveil Global Police Force With Arrest Powers?!

Fact #5 : The People’s Voice Is Known For Fake News

The People’s Voice is the current name for NewsPunch, which possibly changed its name because its brand has been so thoroughly discredited after posting numerous shocking but fake stories.

Founded as Your News Wire in 2014, it was rebranded as NewsPunch in November 2018, before becoming The People’s Voice. A 2017 BuzzFeed report identified NewsPunch as the second-largest source of popular fake news on Facebook that year.

Its articles have been regularly debunked as fake news, so you should never share anything from NewsPunch / The People’s Voice.  Here are some of its fake stories that I fact checked earlier:

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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

 

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