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====== UN resolutions on countering disinformation ======

//As of 1 October 2026. Information only, not legal advice – see the [[about:disclaimer|disclaimer]].//

^ Full title | UN General Assembly resolution 76/227 "Countering disinformation for the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms" (2021); Human Rights Council resolutions on the "Role of States in countering the negative impact of disinformation on the enjoyment and realization of human rights" (2022 ff.); related reports and principles |
^ Type | UN General Assembly and Human Rights Council resolutions; report of the Secretary-General; Secretary-General's principles |
^ Adopted by | UN General Assembly; UN Human Rights Council; UN Secretary-General |
^ Adopted | GA res 76/227: 24 December 2021; HRC res 49/21: 1 April 2022; SG report A/77/287: 12 August 2022; HRC res 55/10: 3 April 2024; UN Global Principles for Information Integrity: 24 June 2024 |
^ Legal status | Non-binding (resolutions, report and principles) |
^ Official text | [[https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/3954983|A/RES/76/227]] · [[https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/3971994|A/HRC/RES/49/21]] · [[https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/3987886|A/77/287]] · [[https://www.un.org/en/information-integrity/global-principles|Global Principles for Information Integrity]] |
^ Subject area | Propaganda, disinformation and elections; UN processes and institutions |

===== Overview =====
Since 2021 the UN General Assembly and the Human Rights Council have adopted resolutions that address disinformation from a human rights perspective. General Assembly resolution 76/227, adopted without a vote on the report of the Third Committee, requested a report of the Secretary-General, which was issued in 2022 as A/77/287. No later General Assembly resolution specifically on countering disinformation has been identified for this entry; the 2026 Human Rights Council draft on the topic recalls resolution 76/227 together with General Assembly resolution 78/265 (2024) on safe, secure and trustworthy artificial intelligence systems. The Human Rights Council has adopted a series of resolutions on the role of States in countering the negative impact of disinformation, led by a core group of Ukraine, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the United Kingdom and (in 2022 and 2024) the United States. In 2024 the Secretary-General launched the UN Global Principles for Information Integrity. The texts emphasise that measures against disinformation must comply with international human rights law, in particular the freedom of opinion and expression, and are referred to in debates on State responses to information operations.

===== Provisions relevant to the cyber and information sphere =====
  * **GA res 76/227 (24 December 2021)** – Affirms the importance of freedom of opinion and expression for countering disinformation; recognises that disinformation can be used to incite violence and hatred; encourages States to counter disinformation through education and media and information literacy; calls on businesses, including online platforms, to align their practices with human rights; stresses that responses must comply with international human rights law; requests the Secretary-General to seek the views of States, UN entities and other stakeholders and to report to the 77th session.
  * **HRC res 49/21 (1 April 2022)** – Adopted without a vote; reaffirms the role of freedom of expression in countering disinformation and rejects censorship-based approaches; mandated a high-level panel discussion on the subject at the Council's 50th session (June 2022).
  * **SG report A/77/287 (12 August 2022)** – Sets out the challenges posed by disinformation, the international legal framework and measures by States and companies. It states that approaches seeking simple solutions are likely to censor legitimate speech, and calls on States, among other things, to avoid vague definitions, refrain from Internet shutdowns and invest in societal resilience and media and information literacy; it calls on technology companies to address human rights risks of their business models and to ensure transparency and consistent content moderation across languages and regions.
  * **HRC res 55/10 (3 April 2024)** – Adopted without a vote; addresses disinformation in armed conflict, in elections and in connection with artificial intelligence, and requested the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee to prepare a report on disinformation.
  * **UN Global Principles for Information Integrity (24 June 2024)** – Five principles: societal trust and resilience; healthy incentives; public empowerment; independent, free and pluralistic media; transparency and research. The calls to action are addressed to States, technology companies, advertisers, media and civil society. The principles build on the Secretary-General's //Our Common Agenda// Policy Brief 8, "Information Integrity on Digital Platforms" (June 2023), and were presented as a resource for Member States ahead of the Summit of the Future (September 2024; see [[law:un:global_digital_compact]]).

===== Application to cyber and information operations =====
The resolutions frame disinformation primarily as a human rights matter and do not define the term as a matter of international law. HRC resolution 55/10 addresses disinformation in situations of armed conflict. The question of when State-sponsored information operations may amount to prohibited intervention in the internal affairs of another State is discussed separately, in national positions on international law in cyberspace and in the UN processes on ICTs (see [[law:national:positions]], [[law:un:ict_norms]], [[law:un:friendly_relations]]).

===== Recent developments =====
  * 2025-02: The Human Rights Council Advisory Committee considered its work on disinformation mandated by resolution 55/10 at its 33rd session (report A/HRC/AC/33/2).
  * 2026-07-06: The Human Rights Council adopts without a vote resolution 62/9, "Role of States in countering the negative impact of disinformation on the enjoyment and realization of human rights" (A/HRC/RES/62/9; draft A/HRC/62/L.9), which addresses, among other things, AI-generated synthetic media and requests a study on the role of artificial intelligence in the dissemination of disinformation. The resolution recalls GA resolution 76/227 and HRC resolutions 49/21 and 55/10 (OHCHR).

===== Related entries =====
  * [[law:un:global_digital_compact]]
  * [[law:hr:iccpr]]
  * [[law:un:ict_norms]]
  * [[law:un:friendly_relations]]
  * [[law:hist:broadcasting_1936]]
  * [[law:eu:disinformation_code]]
  * [[law:eu:dsa]]

===== Sources =====
  * [[https://documents.un.org/doc/undoc/gen/n21/416/87/pdf/n2141687.pdf|UN General Assembly, resolution 76/227 (A/RES/76/227)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/3955093|UN Digital Library, voting record A/RES/76/227 (adopted without vote)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/3971994|UN Human Rights Council, resolution 49/21 (A/HRC/RES/49/21)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://article19.org/resources/un-human-rights-council-adopts-resolution-on-disinformation|ARTICLE 19, UN Human Rights Council adopts resolution on disinformation (2022)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/3987886|UN Secretary-General, Countering disinformation for the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms (A/77/287)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://www.un.org/en/countering-disinformation|UN, Countering Disinformation]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://www.article19.org/resources/un-highlights-from-the-55th-session-of-the-human-rights-council|ARTICLE 19, Highlights from the 55th session of the Human Rights Council (2024)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/4080538/files/A_HRC_AC_33_2-EN.pdf|Human Rights Council Advisory Committee, Report on its 33rd session (A/HRC/AC/33/2)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://www.un.org/en/information-integrity/global-principles|UN Global Principles for Information Integrity]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://caribbean.un.org/sites/default/files/2024-06/Press_release_GlobalPrinciplesInfoIntegrity_0.pdf|UN press release on the launch of the Global Principles (24 June 2024)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/4012857|Our Common Agenda Policy Brief 8: Information Integrity on Digital Platforms (June 2023)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://mediarightsagenda.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/AHRC62L.9.pdf|Human Rights Council, draft resolution A/HRC/62/L.9]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://mediarightsagenda.org/un-human-rights-council-urges-governments-to-respect-protect-freedom-of-expression-while-countering-disinformation/|Media Rights Agenda, UN Human Rights Council urges governments to respect, protect freedom of expression while countering disinformation (2026)]], accessed 2026-09-30
  * [[https://www.ohchr.org/en/hr-bodies/hrc/regular-sessions/session62/res-dec-stat|OHCHR, Human Rights Council 62nd session: resolutions, decisions and President's statements]], accessed 2026-10-01

===== Change log =====
  * 2026-09-30: Entry created.
  * 2026-10-01: HRC resolution 62/9 confirmed from official source; symbol added.