Two teams of the Delhi Police’s Special Cell descended on Twitter’s offices in Delhi and Gurgaon on Monday in connection with an investigation into a complaint about the alleged ‘COVID toolkit’ matter. The controversy was sparked after Twitter marked a tweet by BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra, accusing the Congress of creating a ‘toolkit’ to tarnish the image of the government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s handling of the pandemic, as ‘manipulated media‘.  

The Delhi Police’s Special Cell served a notice to Twitter India on Monday, asking it to share information based on which it classified the tweet as “manipulated media”. 

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The developments have caused the hastag #ManipulatedMedia to become one of the top trends on the micro-blogging site. Here is everything you need to know about the label. 

What is manipulated media?

Any media, including photographs, videos, audio, that have been “deceptively altered or fabricated” and are “likely to cause harm” are categorised as ‘manipulated media’.  

How does Twitter determine whether media is manipulated?

Twitter said it uses a mix of technology and third-party reviews to help determine if a media is manipulated. “In order to determine if media have been significantly and deceptively altered or fabricated, we may use our own technology or receive reports through partnerships with third parties. In situations where we are unable to reliably determine if media have been altered or fabricated, we may not take action to label or remove them,” the company said. 

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What action Twitter takes against manipulated media?

Depending on the severity of the manipulation and the harm it may cause, Twitter may either label the content or remove it altogether. The company uses the following criteria to determine the action:

It also warns accounts may be permanently deleted if users engage in repeated or severe violations of policy.