Understanding the Ongoing Fake News Inquiry at Brazil's Supreme Court

The fake news inquiry at Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court (STF) has now been active for seven years, having been launched in 2019 under the rapporteurship of Justice Alexandre de Moraes. The probe was instituted to examine fraudulent news, slanderous accusations, threats and violations that affect the honorability and security of the Court, as well as leaks of confidential documents intended to implicate justices in illicit acts.

In a recent development, STF President Edson Fachin cited the conclusion of the inquiry as one of the urgent goals of his administration, pointing to recent events that have heightened tensions within the Court. Fachin ordered that the rapporteur’s decision and the accompanying Federal Police reports be removed from the inquiry and forwarded to the same procedure that handles the report identifying Moraes as an interlocutor of messages from former banker Daniel Vorcaro.

Justice Moraes, in a Thursday night dispatch, reiterated that the investigation was opened to examine not only disinformation campaigns but also the leakage of secret information aimed at suggesting illegal practices by members of the Supreme Court from those legally bound to preserve secrecy.

The inquiry has undergone successive extensions, most recently a 180‑day renewal on July 1. It is now among the ten longest‑running investigations at the STF; besides this case, only nine other inquiries have persisted for more than five years.

Over its lifespan, the probe has become the Court’s main tool against disinformation campaigns and attacks on ministers, notably including the investigations into the so‑called “hate cabinet.”