URL: https://torontosun.com/news/national/federal-memo-considers-legal-action-against-social-media-posting-false-info
Title: Feds' memo considers legal action against social media with false info | Toronto Sun
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Final URL: https://torontosun.com/news/national/federal-memo-considers-legal-action-against-social-media-posting-false-info

Feds' memo considers legal action against social media with false info | Toronto Sun
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Federal memo considers legal action against social media posting false info
The memo, obtained by Access to Information, doesn't say what action federal lawyers would take
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Published Jul 03, 2026
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Last updated Jul 03, 2026
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Minister of Industry Melanie Joly rises during Question Period on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
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A 35-page memo to Federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly contemplates “legal action” against Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media it suspects of spreading “false and misleading information.”
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However, the memo, obtained under Access To Information, doesn’t explain what action federal lawyers would take, according to
Blacklock’s Reporter
.
“This strategy seeks to uphold the integrity of and public trust in government information,” states the March 31 memo, Misinformation And Disinformation Strategy, revealed Thursday.
The “objective of the strategy is to establish a plan that will prevent, detect and respond to false or misleading information,” it said.
Managers “already monitor the department’s official social media channels and media outlets on a daily basis for comments and recurring inaccuracies,” said the memo.
New measures will be used to “transition from a reactive stance to one that is focused on prevention and early detection,” it said. “This will enable the department to proactively address false and misleading information.”
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Social media was considered “channels where misinformation related to the department’s mandate is most likely to appear or spread.”
The department itself would determine whether social media posts were “factually incorrect, misleading or out of context.”
Any punitive measures against individuals would be “proportionate and subject to senior level approval.”
The memo acknowledged a risk of “further backlash,” noting that targeting individuals could generate unwanted publicity.
“Responding to misinformation can unintentionally amplify it by increasing visibility or lending legitimacy to fringe sources,” said the memo.
“This risk also applies in the department’s environment, where even acknowledging certain false claims on topics such as national security decisions, investment reviews or artificial intelligence governance can draw broader public attention.”
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The feds’ own in-house research indicates Canadians feel capable of spotting fake news and aren’t on side with Ottawa “declaring what is true or not,” according to a 2024 Study On Online Disinformation Advertising Creative Testing by the Communications Security Establishment.
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