Russia’s invasion into Ukraine has caused global angst, putting the military super powers of the world at odds once again, and potentially forcing an intervention that could lead to one of the biggest conflicts in decades.

And unlike similar incidents in times past, this battle is playing out in the age of social media, with memes, misinformation campaigns and scams all adding to the growing maelstrom of information, which can confuse, contort and cloud what’s actually happening in the eastern European region.

Given this, and the role that social media now plays in the dissemination of information, the platforms need to work fast to limit any misuse of their networks for questionable purpose, and many have already enacted plans to mitigate certain elements of misuse and misinformation.

Here’s a look at what’s been announced thus far from the major social apps.

Meta

Facebook is at the center of the social media information flow within the conflict zone, with around 70 million users in Russia, and 24 million in Ukraine, approximately half of the total population of each respective nation.

Late last week, the Russian Government announced that it would restrict access to Facebook due to Meta’s refusal to remove misinformation warning labels on posts from state-affiliated media. Now, Meta has taken that action a step further, by also prohibiting ads from Russian state media, and demonetizing these accounts, severely limiting the capacity for Russian authorities to use Facebook as an information vector.

Russia, of course, does have its own social media platforms and messaging tools, so there are other ways for the Kremlin to communicate their activities and motivations to Russian citizens. But Meta has taken a strong stance, while it’s also restricted access to many accounts within Ukraine, including those belonging to Russian state media organizations.

In addition to this, Meta has also established a special operations center, staffed by native Russian and Ukrainian speakers, to monitor for harmful content trends, while it’s also added new warning labels when users go to sharewar-related images that its systems detect are over one year old.

Meta’s also outlined a range of safety features for users in Ukraine, “including the ability for people to lock their Facebook profile, removing the ability to view and search friends lists, and additional tools on Messenger”.

Thus far, Meta seems to be staying ahead of major misinformation trends in the conflict, though the amount of posts from spammers and scammers seeking to capitalize on the situation for engagement is significant. 

UPDATE (2/28): Meta has also announced that it will restrict access to content from Russian state-affiliated media outlets RT and Sputnik in response to requests from EU officials.

UPDATE: (3/1): Facebook says that it is now demoting content from Facebook Pages and Instagram accounts representing Russian state-controlled media outlets, while it’s also adding new labels which will appear when users tap on links to these outlets.

Meta has also announced that it’s making encrypted chats in Instagram available to all adults in Ukraine and Russia. Instagram has been working on encrypted messages within IG Direct for some time, as part of its broader messaging integration plan, but this is the first time that it’s gone live for users.

UPDATE (3/4) Meta has now alsoblocked Russian state media providers RT and Sputnik for all users in the UK, following a request from UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries. Dorries called for restrictions on these outlets due to them spreading ‘damaging propaganda into Britain’.

UPDATE (3/4): Meta announced that it will no longer let any advertisers in Russia create or run ads anywhere in the world.

UPDATE (3/5): Russia's communications regulator has announced that the country will move to block Facebook access entirely, in response to Meta's restriction of Russian state media outlets. It's not clear, at this stage, whether Instagram and WhatsApp will also be included in this action.

YouTube

At the request of the Ukrainian Government, Google-owned YouTube has announced that it’s restricting access to Russian state-owned media outlets for users in Ukraine, while it’s also suspending monetization for several Russian channels.

YouTube’s also removing Russian state-owned channels from recommendations, and limiting the reach of their uploads across the platform.

As per YouTube (via The Wall Street Journal):

“As always, our teams are continuing to monitor closely for news developments, including evaluating what any new sanctions and export controls may mean for YouTube.”

In response, Russia’sstate communications regulator hasdemanded that access to Russian media's YouTube channels be restored on Ukrainian territory.

The situation is similar to Facebook, which could eventually see YouTube also face restrictions within Russia in response.

UPDATE (3/1): YouTube is now moving to block all channels connected to Russian state-backed media outlets for all European regions

Google

UPDATE (3/3): Google has now stopped selling all ads in Russia, including those within search listings, ads on YouTube, and ad placements on third-party publishing partners.

Google initially banned Russian state-funded media from buying or selling ads via its platforms, while it also invoked its ‘sensitive events’ policy, which bans marketing that seeks to take advantage of an evolving, sensitive situation.

Google’s move to ban all ads entirely comes in response to Russia's communications regulator ordering Google to stop showing YouTube ads with ‘false political information’ about Ukraine.

Twitter

As it looks to help ensure optimal flow of information for users within the impacted region, Twitter has announced a temporary ban on all ads in Ukraine and Russia “to ensure critical public safety information is elevated and ads don’t detract from it”.

Twitter banned political ads, including those from state-affiliated media, back in 2019, so it’s already ahead of the curve in this respect. The ban on all ads will help to clarify information flow via tweets, while Twitter additionally notes that it’s proactively reviewing Tweets to detect platform manipulation, and taking enforcement action against synthetic and manipulated media that presents a false or misleading depiction of what’s happening.

UPDATE (2/28): Twitter is also adding labels to Tweets that share links to Russian state-affiliated media websites, while it's also reducing the circulation of this content by removing it from recommendations, downranking it in algorithm-defined timelines and more.

UPDATE (3/5): Russian authories have now blocked Twitter access for local users.

UPDATE (3/5): Twitter says that it's detected and removed around 100 accounts that had been using the pro-Russia hashtag #IStandWithPutin under its coordinated inauthentic behavior policy.

TikTok

A key platform to watch right now is TikTok, with reports that Russian-affiliated groups are using the app to spread ‘orchestrated disinformation’, while thousands of related videos are being uploaded to the platform, many fake, causing significant headaches for TikTok’s moderation teams.

The introduction of monetization incentives for popular clips has also added new motivation for bad actors to create fake streams and broadcasts in the app, in a bid to lure viewers, while on the other side, reports have also suggested that Ukrainian TikTok users are using the app to communicate Russian troop locations to Ukrainian fighters.

Thus far, TikTok has made no official comment on the conflict, nor how its platform is being used. And given that TikTok is owned by China-based Bytedance, and China has backed Russia’s action in the region (to some degree), it may not take a firm stance, officially.

But already, some are labeling this the ‘TikTok War’ given the way the platform is being used, which could force TikTok to take more definitive action, and it’ll be interesting to see if and how it does so in line with its links back to the CCP.

UPDATE (2/28): TikTok has now geo-blocked content from Russian state-affiliated media outlets for users in the EU. Those outside the EU can still access this content.

UPDATE (3/4) TikTok says that it will now label content from state-affiliated media in the app, as part of its broader effort to address concerns about misinformation.

UPDATE (3/7): TikTok says that, due to Russia's new 'fake news' law, which could see local representatives or creators face prison time if the platform publishes or hosts any content that the Kremlin deems to be misinformation about the invasion of Ukraine, it will no longer allow Russian users to upload new clips of live-stream in the app.

Russia's fake news law was passed by the lower chamber of Russia's parliament on Friday.

Reddit

Reddit has ‘quarantined’ the r/Russia subreddit due to ongoing issues with misinformation being shared in the group.

Quarantined subreddits don't show up in searches or recommendations, while any user that does come across a quarantined community is shown a warning alert like the above.

UPDATE (3/2): Reddit has also banned all links to Russian state media outlets and their foreign language affiliates across the app.

Snapchat

Snapchat has halted all ads running in Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine in order to facilitate better information flow within the impacted region, while it's also pausing ad sales to all Russian and Belarusian entities. Snap also doesn't accept ads from Russian state-owned entities, nor does it display state-affiliated media in its app.

As per Snap:

"We stand in solidarity with our Ukrainian team members and the people of Ukraine who are fighting for their lives and for their freedom. War is a scourge on our collective humanity, and in this case, it is a direct threat to many of our team members and their families. We are praying for their safety and for peace."

Snap has also pledged over $15 million in humanitarian aid to support organizations in the region, while it's also working to help get its staff out of the impacted area. Ukraine is the home of Looksery, which Snap acquired back in 2015 as the foundational platform for its AR Lenses.

UPDATE (3/4): As a safety precaution to protect Ukrainian citizens, Snapchat has temporarily turned off the Snap Map 'heatmap' feature for Ukraine, which shows how many snaps have been created in particular locations.

The conflict is a significant concern for all of the world, but most obviously for the Ukrainian people, and our thoughts are with those directly impacted by the conflict, and their families.

Hopefully, a peaceful resolution is still a possibility.