Observed Signal · Oct 21, 2020 · Partnership · Source: OnlineMarketing.de · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Neutral
MessengerPeople Partners with WhatsApp to Fight Fake News
MessengerPeople has introduced ThatsFact, a WhatsApp Business API-based tool for fact-checking. The platform enables verified members of the IFCN, NGOs, and media organizations to send WhatsApp messages to certified fact-checkers to verify information. Since June 2020, over 15,000 inquiries have been checked. The browser-based software centralizes WhatsApp messages, automatically qualifies each inquiry, analyzes text, links, images, and videos, and cross-checks media originality. It supports topic-based auto-generated reply suggestions and stores information in a research database for faster responses. The system tracks inquiries via a statistics dashboard (total inquiries, processing status, and per-checker distribution). Early users include Fact Crescendo, Newschecker, Newtral, and a UK-based organization. WhatsApp executives and MessengerPeople founders emphasize scalability, privacy, and the role of WhatsApp in reducing misinformation across platforms, with ARD and dpa named as potential users.
Cross-platform fact-checking tooling via WhatsApp with IFCN partners; relevant to AdTech/MarTech and misinformation mitigation.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- ThatsFact is a WhatsApp Business API-based fact-checking software developed by MessengerPeople.
- Initial users include IFCN members Fact Crescendo, Newschecker (India), Newtral (Spain), and a UK organization.
- Since June 2020, more than 15,000 inquiries have been checked using ThatsFact.
- The tool centralizes WhatsApp messages, automatically qualifies inquiries, and analyzes text, links, images, and videos for truthfulness.
- A statistics dashboard shows the number of inquiries, processing status, and distribution among fact-checkers.
Connected Companies & Entities
2 Entities mappedRelated Market Signals & Shifts
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