Users of Microsoft Edge browser warned not to trust the Daily Mail website
Users of Microsoft's internet browser Edge are being met with a message not to trust the Daily Mail's journalism as part of the browser's new feature designed to fight fake news.
Visitors to the Mail Online who use the Microsoft Edge browser are now greeted with a statement saying 'this website generally fails to maintain basic standards of accuracy and accountability'.
The message is produced by a third party startup called NewsGuard, a service run by news professionals whose aim is to "fight false news, misinformation, and disinformation" by setting industry standard benchmarks highlighting which websites can and cannot be trusted for their news content.
Until recently the service was available as a plug-in but, according to the Guardian, Microsoft have begun installing it on all mobile editions of its Edge browser.
NewsGuard gives the Mail Online one out of five on credibility.
Speaking to the Guardian, NewsGuard co-founder Steve Brill said the decision concerning the Mail Online was made in a transparent manner.
He said: “We spell out fairly clearly in the label exactly how many times we have attempted to contact them. The analyst that wrote this writeup got someone on the phone who, as soon he heard who she was and where she was calling from, hung up.
"As of now, we would love to hear if they have a complaint or if they change anything.”
He added: “They can blame us. And we’re happy to be blamed. Unlike the platforms, we’re happy to be accountable."
A spokesperson for MailOnline said: "We have only very recently become aware of the NewsGuard start-up and are in discussions with them to have this egregiously erroneous classification resolved as soon as possible."
