'Votes will not be counted': Indian election disinformation ads and YouTube
In a joint test with Access Now, YouTube approved 100% (48/48) of ads containing blatant election disinformation in English, Hindi and Telugu, all violating YouTube's own policies.
Executive summary
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In a joint investigation with Access Now, Global Witness submitted 48 advertisements in English, Hindi and Telugu to YouTube ahead of India's 2024 general election, each containing content that explicitly violated the platform's election-misinformation and advertising policies. The ads were withdrawn immediately after approval so none reached the public.
YouTube approved all 48 submissions — a 100% approval rate — within its standard review window. The disinformation tested included false claims about a change in the legal voting age, instructions to cast votes by text message, and messaging designed to discourage specific groups from voting, all forms of content the platform's own rules prohibit.
The investigators note that YouTube had previously demonstrated an ability to detect and reject similar disinformation ahead of the 2022 US midterm elections, but failed comparable tests in Brazil in 2022 and again in India in 2024. The report frames this as evidence of inconsistent enforcement of election-integrity safeguards depending on the country and election in question, raising concerns about unequal protection for voters outside the US and Europe.
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