Surge of Virus Misinformation Stumps Facebook and Twitter

Facebook said it bans content that could cause people harm, such as claims that discourage treatment or taking appropriate precautions against the coronavirus. Posts and videos that shared conspiracy theories were clearly marked as false, once they had been reviewed by fact checkers.

When Facebook users attempt to share them, a message pops up alerting the user that the post includes information that has been deemed false by fact checkers.

Those measures, however, have not stopped people in private Facebook groups from linking to and sharing misinformation surrounding the virus. In private Facebook groups, including one that totals over 100,000 members, conspiracy theories spread that the coronavirus was an invention of the pharmaceutical industry, intended to sell the public on more expensive drugs and more vaccines.

While many posts simply encouraged people to take vitamins and eat a balanced diet to boost their immune system, others offered promises of immunity or cures if certain combinations of powders and drinks were consumed. Some were even more dangerous. The Food and Drug Administration referred to one “miracle mineral solution” posted many times on Facebook and Twitter as “the same as drinking bleach.”

Dr. Chiang, the gastroenterologist, recently helped start the Association for Healthcare Social Media, a group dedicated to encouraging more health care professionals to post on social media so that they can dispel some of the misinformation.

“People are looking for good sources of information because a lot of what they see, when they log into their social media platforms, is just scaring them,” he said.

While Twitter acknowledged the presence of some of this content on its network, Del Harvey, Twitter’s vice president of trust and safety, said the company has not seen “large-scale, coordinated” efforts to misinform people about the coronavirus. After The New York Times contacted Twitter with examples of tweets containing health misinformation about coronavirus, some owners of the accounts were suspended “for spam.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/08/technology/coronavirus-misinformation-social-media.html