Alerts are categorized as high, medium, and low risk.
  • High risk alerts: Narratives with widespread circulation across communities, high engagement, exponential velocity, and a high potential to impact health decisions. Are often more memorable than accurate information.
  • Medium risk alerts: Narratives that are circulating in priority populations and pose some threat to health. Potential for further spread due to the tactics used or because of predicted velocity. Often highlights the questions and concerns of people.
  • Low risk alerts: Narratives that are limited in reach, don’t impact your community, or lack the qualities necessary for future spread. May indicate information gaps, confusion, or concerns.

A U.S. senator set off a firestorm of misinformation after claiming that the FDA has approved or otherwise endorsed ivermectin to treat COVID-19. Many high-profile vaccine opponents are now circulating this misinformation, claiming that the public was lied to about the effectiveness of the anti-parasitic drug against COVID-19.

Recommendation: High Risk Read More +

A widely circulated video clip shows a former Pfizer executive turned anti-vaccine activist claiming that the pandemic was orchestrated. One post sharing the clip has been viewed over 1.2 million times and has garnered over 64,000 engagements. The former executive has a long history of promoting COVID-19 misinformation, including claiming COVID-19 vaccines were 50 times more likely to kill children than the disease, lending him credibility in the anti-vaccine community.

Recommendation: High Risk Read More +

A post that has been shared over 11,000 times has resurfaced the misleading claim that insurance programs bribed doctors to administer COVID-19 vaccines. A U.S. congressperson previously circulated the claim.

Recommendation: Medium Risk Read More +

Videos circulating on multiple social media platforms falsely claim that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling classifies people who received mRNA vaccines as “patented goods.” The videos claim that the vaccines altered recipients' DNA such that they are no longer considered humans and can be denied human rights. This false claim has circulated several times since COVID-19 vaccines were rolled out.

Recommendation: Medium Risk Read More +

Several social media and blog posts question if the diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTaP) vaccine is necessary. The post focuses on pertussis, also called whooping cough, a severe respiratory infection that can cause severe illness and death in infants. One post claims the decline in pertussis deaths is unrelated to the vaccine, while the other falsely claims that the DTaP vaccine contains the mercury-based additive thimerosal.

Recommendation: Medium Risk Read More +

A social media post claims without evidence the 10-year-old daughter of a Johnson & Johnson executive died suddenly after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

Recommendation: Medium Risk Read More +

The CDC shut down an unauthorized lab in Fresno, California, that reportedly contained thousands of gallons of hazardous and infectious agents, including coronavirus, HIV, and bioengineered mice designed to spread COVID-19. The lab that authorities have been investigating for months was registered to several addresses in California and China. Some vaccine opponents have suggested that the lab is part of a larger government conspiracy or that its existence supports the belief that COVID-19 was created in a lab.

Recommendation: Low Risk Read More +

The FDA recently approved the anthrax vaccine Cyfendus for adults up to age 65 with suspected or confirmed exposure to Bacillus anthracis, the bacteria that causes anthrax. Several vaccine opponents claim that the approval was “rushed” and misleadingly claim that the vaccine was approved for all people, falsely implying that it will be a routinely administered vaccination.

Recommendation: Medium Risk Read More +

A video circulating on social media claims that the lipid nanoparticles that protect vaccine mRNA as it is delivered to cells can interact with and be programmed by 5G wireless technology. The claim is based on a patent filed by Moderna related to lipid nanoparticle delivery of mRNA and other genetic material. The patent has nothing to do with 5G or any other cellular or wireless technology. 

Recommendation: Low Risk Read More +

Last week, a University of Southern California basketball player and son of an NBA star was admitted to the hospital after going into cardiac arrest during a workout. Shortly after the news broke, vaccine opponents began baselessly claiming that his cardiac arrest was vaccine-related. Speculation about the young athlete having vaccine-induced myocarditis has garnered millions of views and thousands of shares on social media.

Recommendation: High Risk Read More +

Alerts are categorized as high, medium, and low risk.
  • High risk alerts: Narratives with widespread circulation across communities, high engagement, exponential velocity, and a high potential to impact health decisions. Are often more memorable than accurate information.
  • Medium risk alerts: Narratives that are circulating in priority populations and pose some threat to health. Potential for further spread due to the tactics used or because of predicted velocity. Often highlights the questions and concerns of people.
  • Low risk alerts: Narratives that are limited in reach, don’t impact your community, or lack the qualities necessary for future spread. May indicate information gaps, confusion, or concerns.
Vaccine Misinformation Guide

Get practical tips for addressing misinformation in this new guide. Click image to download.

Vaccine Misinformation Guide

Get practical tips for addressing misinformation in this new guide. Click image to download, or see highlights