MPs have written to X, Meta and TikTok to request evidence of the threat posed by foreign disinformation targeting Britain and its overseas interests, and make clear how they intend to counter the threat.

The letters from parliament’s influential Foreign Affairs Committee reference a recent evidence session on disinformation diplomacy, where lawmakers heard testimony that social media platforms are becoming “melting pots of disinformation”.

Ciaran Martin, founder of the National Cyber Security Centre, told MPs this week that neither the UK nor its allies in the West “have a particularly strong record” on holding those spreading disinformation to account, and lack mechanisms for handling the problem.

Martin warned that the anonymity of social platforms gives bad actors cover to spread disinformation, and leaves UK authorities effectively hamstrung when it originates overseas.

“One of the biggest problems in all sorts of online malevolence is jurisdiction,” he said.

“Ultimately, if you are doing something from the UK landmass, there is a pretty high probability that the British police will find you, but if you are doing something from lots of different parts of the world, there is essentially no chance. 

“You are then into things such as the transmission mechanisms and the obligations on social media platforms to take this stuff down.”

As a result, the foreign affairs committee now wants to question these platforms to explain how they detect and respond to “inauthentic coordinated behaviour”, the term used by social media in relation to disinformation.

Addressing invitations to public policy and government leads at Meta, TikTok, and X, the committee said that it is looking for information about “coordinated” malicious activity, a sign that MPs are worried less about lone trolls and more about the cyber activity of hostile nation states like Russia. 

“Make no mistake, nefarious actors are seeking to manipulate and deceive us daily to serve their own interests,” said committee chair Emily Thornberry.

“Time and again, we’ve been told that social media platforms are being weaponised to sow division and undermine trust, that they have become a host for the dissemination of lies. These lies undermine trust in government, in politics, and in democracy here in Britain.

“That’s why today we’ve written to the social media companies X, Meta, and TikTok as part of our inquiry into disinformation diplomacy. These platforms have questions to answer over their inadequate response to the spread of disinformation.”

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Disinformation, especially that supercharged by AI, has become a top-of-mind threat for most governments and multinational organisations of late.

Last year, a World Economic Forum report warned it was the single biggest threat facing the world in the years ahead, thanks to the major role it plays in misleading voters and societal polarisation.

Industry analysts at Gartner have warned that businesses, especially those working in tech, should prioritise disinformation security over the next five years by implementing deepfake detection, impersonation prevention and reputation protection systems, something 50% of enterprises said they will be doing by next year.