Ofcom research: Nearly half of people across the UK nations have come across false or misleading information about Covid-19

By Rebecca Lennon, Regulatory Affairs Advisor at Ofcom.

As a response to the Covid-19 outbreak, Ofcom has been looking at how people are getting news and information about the crisis.

We have been carrying out an online Covid-19 news and information survey of 2,000 UK participants aged 16 and over each week since the beginning of the lockdown. We plan to continue this until at least the end of June. We are monitoring the news and information sources people are using to gather information about the pandemic, their levels of trust in these sources, their general attitudes, and the extent to which people are following government advice. We also ask whether people have come across any misinformation and, if so, how frequently and which types.