[2] NewsGuard Technologies Inc., the company behind the tool, also provides services such as misinformation tracking and brand safety for advertisers, search engines, social media platforms, cybersecurity firms, and government agencies.

[3][4] NewsGuard Technologies was founded in 2018 by Steven Brill and L. Gordon Crovitz, who serve as co-CEOs.

Under the plans, a user would see a warning message before visiting a misleading site without needing to have the NewsGuard extension installed.

[7] In January 2020, NewsGuard began notifying users that it would become a paid, member-supported browser extension in early 2020, while remaining free for libraries and schools.

They plan to roll out new premium features, including a reliability score, and offer new mobile apps for Android and iOS.

This and additional information is then displayed in the form of a "Nutrition Label" by the NewsGuard browser extension whenever a user visits a news site.

[10] Since 2022, the company has partnered the American Federation of Teachers so that many classrooms and libraries in the United States have the NewsGuard browser extension installed on their computers, expanding access to millions of users.

[23][a] In 2024, The Daily Wire, The Federalist, and Texas sued the Department of State arguing that it does not have the authority to give a $25,000 grant to tools like NewsGuard that could "render disfavored press outlets unprofitable".

[29][needs update] Republican politicians in the U.S. House of Representatives opened a probe into Newsguard in June 2024.