Facebook Announces Canadian Election Integrity Initiative in Lead Up to 2019

Efforts include new crisis email line, cyber hygiene training for political parties and politicians and bolstering digital news literacy across Canada

OTTAWA, Oct. 19, 2017 /CNW/ - Today, Facebook Canada announced a new Canadian Election Integrity Initiative to help ensure the platform is a space for authentic civic engagement in the lead-up to the 2019 election. The initiative, designed specifically for Canada, responds to the Communications Security Establishment's (CSE) recent cyber-threat assessment report. Canada's Minister of Democratic Institutions, the Hon. Karina Gould, joined Facebook as a panelist for the event.

"We know that Facebook plays an important role in facilitating public dialogue," says Kevin Chan, Head of Public Policy for Facebook Canada. "That's why we take the threats identified by the CSE very seriously and why we're starting now to proactively address them."

In the lead up to 2019, this first phase of the Canadian Election Integrity Initiative will focus on four key components:

• A new 2-year digital news literacy partnership ith MediaSmarts, Canada's centre for digital and media literacy
• The release of Facebook's new Cyber Hygiene Guide for Canadian political parties and politicians;
• A cyber hygiene training program for all federal political parties and politicians; and
• A new cyber threats crisis email line for politicians and political parties, in the event that their accounts are compromised.

"Media literacy – including the ability to evaluate information – is essential in today's digital world," says Matthew Johnson, Director of Education at MediaSmarts. "More than ever we rely on online sources to be informed, engaged citizens. Knowing how to verify information effectively and share it responsibly is now not just a life skill, but a cornerstone of our democracy."

The live stream video of today's announcement and panel discussion about citizen literacy and authentic civic engagement online can be viewed at, starting at 11:30am EST: https://www.facebook.com/GovtPolitics/

About Facebook Canada
Founded in 2004, Facebook's mission is to give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together. More than 23 million Canadians use Facebook to stay connected with friends and family, to discover what's going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them. Facebook® is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc. All other brand or product names mentioned may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

SOURCE Facebook Canada

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