"Have you ever clicked on a link only to land on an empty webpage with the message "Error 404" or "404 Not Found?" If so, you're not alone. There are several reasons this can happen the simplest being a misspelled URL. But increasingly, the cause is that the page has been deleted or moved, sometimes intentionally. That's why DW Fact check has put together a guide to help you find deleted or altered content."
"As online fact checking practices has grown in importance, tools for archiving digital content have become essential. They allow users to take 'snapshots' of websites or social media posts, capturing how they looked at a specific moment in time and ensuring they remain accessible even if the original content disappears. Internet content changes constantly pages vanish, links break, and information gets edited or removed."
"Real-world cases illustrate why archiving is so crucial. In January 2025, the White House shut down its Spanish-language page. The Library of US Congress removed certain parts of the U.S. Constitutionfrom its online archive. In September 2022, Iran restricted internet access in parts of Tehran and Kurdistan, blocking Instagram and WhatsApp during protests following the death of a Kurdish woman in police custody."
Webpages often return "Error 404" because of misspelled URLs or because pages have been deleted or moved, sometimes intentionally. Archiving tools capture snapshots of websites and social media posts at specific moments, preserving appearance and content even if originals disappear. A Pew Research Center study found 38% of webpages from 2013 are no longer available, underscoring the scale of online content loss. Archiving serves accountability, transparency, and historical preservation. Recent real-world examples include the White House Spanish-language page shutdown, removal of parts of the U.S. Constitution from an online archive, internet restrictions during Iranian protests, and loss of access to a major Chinese web archive.
Read at www.dw.com
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