Misinformation Alerts
Knowing what misinformation is being shared can help you generate effective messaging.
These insights are based on a combination of automated media monitoring and manual review by public health data analysts. Media data are publicly available data from many sources, such as social media, broadcast television, newspapers and magazines, news websites, online video, blogs, and more. Analysts from the Public Good Projects triangulate this data along with other data from fact checking organizations and investigative sources to provide an accurate, but not exhaustive, list of currently circulating misinformation.
Alerts are categorized as high, medium, and low risk.
- High risk alerts: We recommend directly addressing and debunking the misinformation
- Medium risk alerts: We recommend monitoring the situation but not actively engaging.
- Low risk alerts: Provided for informational purposes. We do not recommend additional action at the moment.
An anti-vaccine account claims vaccine injuries are underreported, based on the unsupported claim that less than 1 percent of adverse reactions are reported to VAERS. The post includes images of children allegedly injured or killed by vaccines, including cases of SIDS and autism.
Recommendation: Debunking messaging may explain that there is no link between vaccines and either autism or SIDS. Emphasizing that scientists have investigated a potential relationship between the conditions and vaccination for decades and have never found evidence to support any connection is recommended. There is no evidence to support the claim that vaccine injuries are underreported. Vaccine safety monitoring systems like VAERS are often used incorrectly, sometimes deliberately, to spread misinformation and disinformation. Emphasizing that these reporting systems contain unverified reports while directing to actual evidence is recommended, as is continuing to explain what mild side effects people can expect after vaccination. Fact Checking Source(s): Lead Stories, CHOP, CDC
A Health Canada survey found that parents are significantly less likely to accept recommended childhood immunizations as a result of the pandemic. The proportion of parents refusing some or all vaccines has nearly doubled since 2017, increasing from 12 to 22 percent. A popular social media account shared the study and claimed that their children won’t receive any vaccines because “Covid has opened my eyes.”
Recommendation: Widespread concerns and distrust about the safety of vaccines can lead to hesitancy and refusal, which increases the risk. Emphasizing that vaccines are one of the most important medical innovations in history is recommended, as is explaining that diseases that once killed and injured millions have been largely wiped out thanks to vaccines. Debunking messaging may also emphasize that the only reason parents can even consider forgoing routine vaccinations against deadly and debilitating diseases like polio and rubella is because vaccines have so dramatically reduced their spread. Fact Checking Source(s): American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians, UNICEF
Former first daughter Chelsea Clinton is partnering with WHO and the Gates Foundation for The Big Catch-Up, a global campaign to vaccinate millions of children who have missed routine immunizations during the pandemic. An article about the campaign falsely claims it will “force jab” unvaccinated children. The article’s headline includes a fake quote falsely attributed to Clinton.
Recommendation: The inflammatory and widespread nature of the misinformation increases its risk. Debunking messaging may explain that the pandemic disrupted routine immunizations for over two years, and many countries are still struggling to restore vaccination coverage to pre-pandemic levels. According to a recent UNICEF report, one in five children is either under-vaccinated or zero dose (having received no immunizations), the highest rate in 15 years. Emphasizing that The Big Catch-Up was launched to protect millions of children by bringing them up to date on their immunizations is recommended, as is explaining that vaccines are administered with the knowledge and consent of children’s parents and families. Fact-Checking Source(s):
An organization known for opposing vaccines published an article offering proof of a well-established fact that has been public knowledge for three years: The Department of Defense, in partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services, helped fund the development of COVID-19 vaccines. The organization claims that the contract between the DoD and Moderna was a “military-backed countermeasure.”
Recommendation: The article has been circulated by an anti-vaccine figure with a large following, hence the elevated risk. Emphasizing that it has been public knowledge since the launch of Operation Warp Speed in May 2020 that the initiative received funding and support from the Defense Department is recommended. The article reveals nothing that was not already known to the public or any evidence of wrongdoing on the part of the DoD or Moderna. Prebunking messaging may explain that the U.S. military has a long history of supporting vaccine development, testing, and mandates, dating back to the 1776 smallpox inoculation mandate ordered by General George Washington. Fact Checking Source(s): Department of Defense, PolitiFact
A popular anti-vaccine account shared a quote from a prominent anti-vaccine figure and current presidential candidate claiming that the CDC profits off vaccines. The quote falsely states that the CDC is a “vaccine company” that makes billions of dollars off vaccines each year.
Recommendation: The high-profile nature and large audience of the source increase the risk of misinformation. Debunking messaging may explain that, while the CDC does own vaccine patents and licenses vaccine technology, it doesn’t make any profit from them. The billion-dollar figure is the agency’s annual budget for purchasing vaccines, which it then makes available for free to the public. The CDC has patents on vaccine development technology that are available for use by researchers worldwide. Fact-Checking Source(s):
Thousands of social media users have shared an image of an infant whose parent claims she was severely injured by routine vaccinations. A screenshot of a social media post claims that the child experienced vomiting, high fever, and a seizure shortly after receiving her 12-month vaccines.
Recommendation: The widespread circulation of the story increases its risk. Debunking messaging may emphasize that there is no evidence that vaccines caused the child’s illness and that a pediatrician ruled out that possibility. The infant reportedly tested positive for metapneumovirus, an upper respiratory disease that can cause severe symptoms, including high fever, vomiting, and seizures, in young children. Fact Checking Source(s): Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic
A conservative website published an article questioning why the U.S. government is continuing to encourage “failed” COVID-19 vaccination. The article claims that the vaccines are ineffective because they didn’t stop COVID-19 transmission.
Recommendation: Emphasizing that the COVID-19 vaccines have saved millions of lives and prevented millions of hospitalizations is recommended. Debunking messaging may explain that vaccinated people have consistently been at lower risk than unvaccinated people for serious illness, hospitalization, and death from every COVID-19 variant. Fact Checking Source(s): Commonwealth Fund, Stanford University
A website founded by an anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist claims that the FDA and Pfizer covered up data showing that the COVID-19 vaccine causes birth defects and other risks during pregnancy.
Recommendation: The persistence of the false claim increases its risk. The site making the claim has repeatedly misrepresented and misinterpreted clinical data to promote misinformation about the safety of the vaccine. Debunking messaging may explain that the claim is based on adverse event reports that have been used repeatedly by vaccine skeptics to inflate safety concerns related to COVID-19 vaccines. Continuing to emphasize that multiple large-scale studies show that COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy does not increase the risk of pregnancy complications is recommended. Fact Checking Source(s): USA Today, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, CIDRAP
A trending social media post promotes the myth that COVID-19 vaccines reduce the body’s ability to produce white blood cells to defend against disease. The post includes a video with over 1.1 million views featuring an anonymous “Big Pharma whistleblower” who compares the supposed effect of the vaccines on the immune system to HIV/AIDS.
Recommendation: The myth that COVID-19 vaccines weaken the immune system has persisted for nearly two years, hence the high risk level. Debunking messaging may explain that there is no scientific evidence to support the claim. Informational material may also explain that the vaccines don’t negatively affect immune cells or the immune system as a whole. Instead, they strengthen the immune system’s ability to fight COVID-19 infection. Fact-Checking Source(s):
A trending post shares a video claiming that WHO gave millions of Africans smallpox vaccines laced with HIV. The video features a real 1987 New York Times article that baselessly speculated that the smallpox vaccines “triggered the AIDS virus.”
Recommendation: The false claim that vaccines cause other diseases has been used for decades to argue against vaccination. Debunking messaging may explain that the theory proposed in the Times was immediately rejected by experts, who emphasized that the claim had no basis in reality. The claim also ignores the fact that mass smallpox vaccination campaigns were being carried out in other parts of the world with no similar “triggering” of HIV. Fact Checking Source(s): Full Fact
Alerts are categorized as high, medium, and low risk.
- High risk alerts: We recommend directly addressing and debunking the misinformation
- Medium risk alerts: We recommend monitoring the situation but not actively engaging.
- Low risk alerts: Provided for informational purposes. We do not recommend additional action at the moment.
Vaccine Misinformation Guide
Get practical tips for addressing misinformation in this new guide. Click image to download, or see highlights.