Very few in Cyprus check whether what they read online is true or not

Though 35 per of Cypriots aged 16 to 74 saw untrue or doubtful information on news websites or social media, only 17 per cent verified its truthfulness, according to a survey carried this year, Eurostat reported on Thursday.

According to data on ICT usage in households and by individuals, 47 per cent of all people aged 16-74 years in the EU saw untrue or doubtful information on news websites or social media during the three months prior to the survey.

The share of people aged 16-74 years old who verified information found on online news sites or social media in the previous three months was largest in the Netherlands (45 per cent), followed by Luxembourg (41 per cent) and Ireland (39 per cent). However, the smallest share was recorded in Lithuania (11 per cent), followed by Romania (12 per cent) and Poland (16 per cent).  Cyprus was fifth from the bottom.

In the EU, people aged 16-74 years old primarily checked if the information was truthful by checking the sources or finding other information on the internet (20 per cent).

People also checked information by discussing it with other persons offline or using sources not on the internet (12 per cent). The least popular method was checking by following or taking part in an internet discussion regarding the information (7 per cent).