Global False Information Online Viewed as Major Threat, Survey Finds

Across the globe, false information online is widely seen as a major national threat, with concern spanning both high and middle-income countries, according to a comprehensive new survey of 25 nations.

The survey reveals that a median of 72% of adults view the spread of false information online as a major threat to their country, while 21% consider it a minor threat and just 5% dismiss it entirely. The concern transcends geographic and economic boundaries, with majorities in 24 of the 25 surveyed nations expressing serious apprehension about online misinformation.

Israel stands as the only exception, where fewer than half of adults (43%) view false information online as a major threat. An additional 27% of Israelis classify it as a minor threat, while 20% don’t consider it threatening at all—a notable deviation from the global consensus.

The findings highlight the persistent nature of this concern. In most of the 16 countries where trend data is available, public perceptions have remained relatively stable since 2022. However, significant increases in concern were recorded in several European nations, most notably Poland, where the percentage jumped by 20 points. Sweden (+10 points), Hungary (+9), France (+6), and Germany (+6) also saw notable increases. Only Greece recorded a substantial decrease, with concern dropping 7 percentage points to 72%.

Age appears to play a significant role in shaping perceptions about online misinformation. In multiple countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Japan, Kenya, Poland, Sweden, and the United States, adults over 50 express greater concern than their younger counterparts aged 18-34. This generational divide suggests older populations may feel particularly vulnerable to online falsehoods.

Interestingly, this pattern reverses in Brazil and Turkey, where younger adults express more concern than older generations, though researchers note that older adults in these countries were slightly less likely to respond to this question.

Political ideology emerges as another crucial factor influencing attitudes toward online misinformation. In nine countries, people who identify with the political left express significantly higher levels of concern than those on the right. The disparity is particularly pronounced in Germany and the United States. In America, 82% of liberals consider false information online a major threat, compared to 60% of conservatives.

Israel once again stands out as an exception, being the only surveyed country where people on the political left are less concerned about online misinformation than those on the right.

In Europe, the survey reveals a notable pattern among supporters of right-wing populist parties, who consistently express less concern about online misinformation than non-supporters. In Germany, only 55% of those with a favorable view of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) consider false information a major threat, compared to 89% of those with unfavorable views of the party. Similar patterns emerge in Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and the UK.

Conversely, supporters of Podemos, a left-leaning populist party in Spain, show greater concern about online misinformation than non-supporters (83% vs. 71%), highlighting how attitudes toward misinformation can vary significantly across different populist movements.

The findings come as global social media platforms and governments continue to grapple with how to address the spread of misinformation online. Many nations have implemented or proposed regulations aimed at curbing false information, while tech companies have expanded fact-checking initiatives and content moderation systems with varying degrees of success.

As digital communication becomes increasingly central to public discourse worldwide, these results underscore the broad recognition of misinformation as a significant societal challenge, even as responses to this threat vary along demographic and ideological lines.