It can sometimes confuse, mislead, or influence people. COVID-19 is a new virus, which means it is sometimes easy for people to misunderstand information, interpret it incorrectly, or come to their own inaccurate conclusions.
Questions you may have
Most people don’t share this type of information knowingly. They may have genuinely believed something they read from an unofficial news source. They may also not have enough previous knowledge to accurately distinguish between information sources that are genuine, and those that are not. It might be tempting for people to believe information that makes it seem like the pandemic is not as dangerous as others are saying, because we really want to get back to our normal lives. Unfortunately, the truth is that the virus can be very dangerous.
Sadly, a small amount of people do share this kind of information online on purpose, despite knowing that it could cause harm to others. This is called disinformation. E.g. some may know the risk of the virus but believe that they should be able to live their lives as normal anyway, so they spread information that supports this.
Some people may spread this type of information for financial gain. E.g. if they are selling a product that claims to protect against COVID-19 (when in fact it doesn’t).
Some people may also publish misleading ‘clickbait’ so that they can gain widespread viral attention.
Examples of medical misinformation about COVID-19 that you might see online are:
- the virus is not as deadly as the experts are making out;
- people can protect themselves from COVID-19 by taking hot baths (or a range of other home remedies);
- COVID-19 has been caused by 5G;
- the death toll has been extremely exaggerated;
- the virus was planned;
- the vaccine has been rushed through and is therefore not safe;
- and the vaccine will inject us with a tracker.
All of these claims are FALSE and have no supporting evidence.
People who believe medical misinformation online may not take the necessary precautions to keep themselves and others safe e.g. social distancing. This could lead to them getting the virus and coming to harm, or causing harm to others.
If people believe that the vaccine isn’t safe, they will be less likely to get it, therefore putting them and others at risk.
If the information is not from an official news source, there is a higher possibility of there being spelling or grammatical mistakes, which might be a clue that you are looking at misinformation. However, this should not be your only indicator.
Think about whether the site it is hosted on is well-known or whether it looks suspicious. Look at how many people have shared the story and what evidence the writer has provided to back up their points.
Sometimes, a fake news story can still be spread widely and may, on the surface, look reliable. If it has been shared on many different sites, can you find the original source of the information? Compare the news story with similar content on official news websites.
Look beyond the headline and read the story in detail to spot anything that does not seem right to you. You can also check with a trusted adult (e.g. a teacher) or use a fact checker.
Not necessarily. Although official news sources are your best source of accurate information, you may be able to gain further insight into COVID-19 and the pandemic through unofficial news sources. For example, people who have had the virus sometimes use their social media accounts to warn people of the risks of COVID-19 and ask people to follow the rules.
This can be a difficult situation and will depend on your relationship with the person. If you feel comfortable doing so, you could message them and explain that what they’ve shared isn’t true. Try to be respectful and think about how you would feel if the roles were reversed – nobody likes to hear that they’re wrong! You could include a link to a fact checking website if you think it might help.
Alternatively, you may be able to report their post – reporting on social media is anonymous, so they won’t know that it was you. The best option is to talk to an adult you know and trust, like a parent or carer who supports you at home, so that you can tackle the situation together.
Top Tips
- Read beyond the headline – when scrolling or searching online, remember that you won’t always get the full story from a headline, title, or photo.
- Look for the original source – whatever content you are looking at, try to work out who created it or where it came from originally.
- Question and research – Think about the purpose / intention of the story, whether it matches what you already know or if there are any clues it might be suspicious. Check the information using other sources too, e.g., on several other websites, different videos, or reading offline materials.
- Act against fake news – use the report tool or speak up about fake or misleading content and never share it on without checking it’s true.
- Speak to an adult you know and trust for further help and support – this could be a parent, carer or whoever looks after you at home, a teacher or staff member at school, or somebody else.