An Essential poll has found a vast majority of Australians are concerned about the power of Google and Facebook and want them held accountable for the rise of fake news online.
The survey of more than 1000 voters conducted by the Guardian has uncovered strong support for tighter regulation of the digital media giants as the government prepares to crack down on the sector following an 18-month digital platforms inquiry.
Of those surveyed, 80 per cent of those revealed they were concerned about how Facebook and Google collected and used personal data, with 75% of participants agreeing that the platforms were responsible for distributing fake news.