Role of States in Countering the Negative Impact of Disinformation on the Enjoyment and Realization of Human Rights

A/HRC/RES/55/10View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A document of the Human Rights Council, under agenda item 3 Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development, published in 2024.

What other versions does this mandate have?

3 versions · 2022–2026

This is an older version — the most recent is A/HRC/RES/62/9

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2026	A/HRC/RES/62/9	Role of States in countering the negative impact of disinformation on the enjoyment and realization of human rights	2,476	77%Compare
2024	A/HRC/RES/55/10	Role of States in countering the negative impact of disinformation on the enjoyment and realization of human rights	2,045	56%Compare
2022	A/HRC/RES/49/21	Role of States in countering the negative impact of disinformation on the enjoyment and realization of human rights	1,546	–

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Entity	(Sub-)Programme	Title	Total mandates cited	Expenditure
	Subprogramme 1	Human rights mainstreaming, right to development, and research and analysis	108

Historical expenditure covers the complete programme or subprogramme, not this mandate. For an overview of all UN entities and programmes, see UN entities and programmes.

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Entity	(Sub-)Programme	Title	Total mandates cited	Expenditure
	Subprogramme 1	Human rights mainstreaming, right to development, and research and analysis	108	—

Historical expenditure covers the complete programme or subprogramme, not this mandate. For an overview of all UN entities and programmes, see UN entities and programmes.

What subjects does this mandate have?

5 subjects

Corporate Social Responsibility Disinformation Freedom of Expression Freedom of Information Human Rights

What’s in this document?

12 operative paragraphs

Affirms that disinformation can negatively affect the enjoyment and realization of all human rights, and that States play a central role in countering disinformation;

Calls upon States to ensure that their responses to the spread of disinformation comply with international human rights law and that their efforts to counter disinformation promote, protect and respect individuals’ freedom of expression and freedom to seek, receive and impart information, as well as other human rights;

Urges States to facilitate an environment supportive of countering disinformation through multidimensional and multi-stakeholder responses that are in compliance with international human rights law, including through enhanced cooperation with international organizations, civil society, the media, the private sector and other stakeholders;

Invites States to encourage business enterprises, including social media companies, to address disinformation while respecting human rights, including through the review of business models, in particular the role of algorithms and ranking systems in amplifying disinformation, enhancing transparency, enforcing all applicable legal protections for users and encouraging due diligence in line with the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights;

Calls upon all States to refrain from conducting or sponsoring disinformation campaigns domestically or transnationally for political or other purposes, and encourages them to condemn such acts;

Commits to the promotion of international cooperation to counter the negative impact of disinformation on the enjoyment and realization of human rights;

Invites States to improve access to diverse and verifiable sources of information, including through robust laws and policies that protect and enable access to information, transparency of governance and the promotion of independent, free, plural and diverse media, and to take measures to close digital divides, including the gender digital divide, and to ensure the safety of journalists and media workers online and offline;

Urges States, civil society, industry, international organizations, the media and other stakeholders to recognize the compounding risks that disinformation could introduce to electoral and other democratic processes, and to work in a cross-sectoral manner to develop practical strategies, including through media and information literacy, to mitigate risks while ensuring the full enjoyment of human rights and freedoms;

Requests the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee to conduct a study and to prepare a report on the impact of disinformation on the enjoyment and realization of human rights, and to present it to the Human Rights Council at its sixty-first session;

Requests the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in consultation with the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, to convene, before the fifty-ninth session of the Human Rights Council, a half-day expert workshop, open to the participation of States, members of civil society and the private sector, United Nations experts and all relevant stakeholders, to review the methods used to disseminate disinformation and to promote tools and approaches to counter these challenges while protecting and reinforcing human rights standards, and to make the workshop fully accessible to persons with disabilities, and requests the Advisory Committee to present an oral update on its preparation of the above-mentioned report during the expert workshop;

Also requests the Office of the High Commissioner to submit a summary report on the expert workshop to the Human Rights Council at its sixty-first session;

Decides to remain seized of the matter.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What other versions does this mandate have?

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

Table of contents

Who cites this mandate in the budget?