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.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: 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.
Social media posts trending in English and Spanish are circulating the claims of a supposed “WHO whistleblower” who previously promoted hoax vaccine detoxes. The claims include many disproven conspiracy theories, including that COVID-19 vaccines contain graphene oxide, radiofrequency trackers, toxic metals, and nanochips. One post claims COVID-19 vaccines originated as a military experiment using CRISPR DNA editing technology. A video clip in one post that has been viewed 1.2 million times includes the bizarre claim that the vaccines contain the eggs of a tentacled parasite.
Recommendation:
Medium Risk Read More +
The so-called whistleblower has been making baseless claims for two years. In the nearly two and a half years since the vaccines became available, there has been no evidence to support any of the claims made in these posts. The ingredients of all COVID-19 vaccines have been available online for over two years. Independent analysis of the vaccines has shown that they do not contain any toxic ingredients, including graphene oxide, heavy metals, tracking devices, or parasites. No COVID-19 vaccines were developed using CRISPR. The vaccines underwent rigorous testing for safety and effectiveness before they were authorized for use. Fact Checking Source(s): AP, Health Feedback
A well-known anti-vaccine advocate is claiming that the hepatitis B vaccine is responsible for an increase in autism diagnoses over the last few decades. The video claims that children who received the vaccine as infants were more likely to be diagnosed with autism. One clip from the video has been watched over 700,000 times.
Recommendation:
High Risk Read More +
The high profile and widespread nature of the misinformation elevates its risk. Debunking messaging may emphasize that there is no evidence to support the claim that hepatitis B vaccines—or any other vaccine—causes autism. Autism spectrum disorders have been increasing steadily since the mid-1970s, nearly two decades before the CDC began recommending that newborns be vaccinated against hepatitis B. Since the vaccine rollout in the 1990s, infections in children have dropped 95 percent. Serious side effects have been reported in less than one in a million children vaccinated. Fact-Checking Source(s):
An image circulating online claims that the World Health Organization is tracking people who are not COVID-19 vaccinated. The claim is based on WHO’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes, which include a designation for people who are unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Recommendation:
Low Risk Read More +
Messaging may explain that ICD-10 codes date back to 2015 and are used to consistently classify thousands of medical diagnoses and symptoms in hospitals worldwide. Emphasizing that the codes are important for monitoring national and international health trends and have been assigned to many vaccines is recommended, as is clarifying that WHO introduced several new ICD codes in 2021 related to COVID-19 diagnosis, complications, and vaccination status. These codes are used to document health issues that arise after COVID-19 infection or vaccination. Fact-checking sources:
A hoax news site is claiming that a Philippines “heinous crimes court” issued an “international arrest warrant” for Bill Gates on “premeditated murder” charges related to COVID-19 vaccines. The story has been picked up by several large right-wing social media accounts.
Recommendation:
Low Risk Read More +
Responding to every piece of misinformation may detract from priority talking points. If a response is needed, emphasizing that the story is entirely fabricated is recommended. The only source for the story is a fake news website. No court has issued an arrest warrant for the billionaire. International arrest warrants and heinous crimes courts do not exist. Fact-checking sources:
A social media account that frequently promotes vaccine misinformation posted a video claiming that COVID-19 vaccines have increased rates of cancers. The video, which has been viewed nearly half a million times, claims that doctors are reporting more cases of vaginal and uterine cancer than ever.
Recommendation:
High Risk Read More +
The persistence and high engagement of this misinformation increases its risk. Debunking messaging may explain that anti-vaccine advocates have claimed for decades that vaccines cause cancer. No studies have ever supported these claims, which are based on speculation, anecdotes, and unverified data. Emphasizing that there is no evidence that COVID-19 vaccines are unsafe and that they have never been linked to any cancer is recommended. Fact-Checking Source(s):
A video claims to show 96 children who died from injuries related to COVID-19 vaccines, including 77 in the last three months. Like many false claims, the video uses fear mongering and emotional appeals without any evidence to support its claims.
Recommendation:
Medium Risk Read More +
While any death is a tragedy, there is no evidence linking these deaths to COVID-19 and no data about the children’s cause of death or vaccination status. Messaging may explain that the increase in sudden deaths began early in the pandemic before COVID-19 vaccines were available and closely mirrors COVID-19 waves, not vaccination rates. Fact Checking Source(s): WBUR, AP News, YLE
A video clip of two anti-vaccine figures promotes the baseless claim that vaccines make children more susceptible to chronic illnesses. In the video, which suggests questioning everything, including childhood vaccines, they say that in the last 40 years, the rates of childhood chronic diseases have increased from 6 percent to 54 percent. They note that this period coincided with the addition of several new vaccines to the routine immunization schedule, insinuating that the rise in illnesses was caused by vaccines.
Recommendation:
Medium Risk Read More +
Emphasizing that vaccines have been monitored for safety and effectiveness for decades, and there is no evidence that any routine vaccine causes chronic illnesses in children, is recommended. While it is true that reported rates of chronic illness rates have increased in the last 40 years, the sources of the two numbers were looking at different types of data and can’t be used for comparison. The definition of chronic illnesses in children varies widely. Some definitions include only illnesses that cause disability, while others include seasonal allergies, chronic ear infections, and overweight BMIs. Fact Checking Source(s): FactCheck.org
An image trending on social media claims that Pfizer’s respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine, which is currently under FDA review for use in older adults, is dangerous for pregnant people. The basis of this claim is that a clinical trial for an RSV vaccine developed by a different pharmaceutical company, GSK, was suspended last year due to safety concerns in pregnant people.
Recommendation:
Medium Risk Read More +
Emphasizing that there is no evidence of safety concerns related to Pfizer’s RSV vaccine is recommended. Prebunking messaging may explain that the purpose of the clinical trial and FDA approval process is to identify potential safety issues for new vaccines. It is not possible to draw conclusions about a vaccine based on data about a different vaccine developed by a different organization. RSV is a respiratory virus that affects millions of people each year and is one of the leading causes of death in infants worldwide. Fact Checking Source(s): Reuters, The Conversation
A social media post claims that Blue Cross Blue Shield pays pediatricians a $40,000 bonus for vaccinating 100 patients under the age of 2 and that they lose the bonus if less than 63 percent of patients are vaccinated. This claim is based on a 2016 blog post insinuating doctors don’t have patients' best interests at heart.
Recommendation:
Medium Risk Read More +
The persistence of this misinformation and its potential to cause hesitancy about routine vaccines increases its risk. Debunking messaging may explain that insurance incentive programs require doctors to meet multiple performance goals related to the quality of patient care and health outcomes. The performance metrics include timely vaccinations, regular appointments, appropriate use of medications, and disease diagnosis and treatment. Emphasizing that vaccinations are integral to pediatric care, reducing the risk of patients contracting serious and potentially fatal illnesses, is recommended. Fact Checking Source(s): USA Today, FactCheck.org
A story claiming that Kenyan babies are being used as test subjects for a biometric vaccine tracking system is circulating among vaccine opponents. In reality, the pilot program seeks to ensure that all children have a legal identity, birth registration, and appropriate vaccinations.
Recommendation:
Medium Risk Read More +
Emphasizing that the story and posts sharing it are misrepresenting the program is recommended. The pilot program is a collaboration between the Japanese tech company NEC, the Kenya Medical Research Institute, and Nagasaki University and involves no experimentation. Infants’ fingerprints will be collected at birth and used to ensure that they receive scheduled immunizations and nutritional supplements for the first five years of life. The program was launched because millions of children each year die of preventable diseases before age 5. In the African continent, over 8 million children missed routine immunizations in 2021. Fact Checking Source(s): KEMRI, Healthcare Africa, Nation
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, or see highlights.