City
Epaper

Facebook to weed out posts spreading misinformation about coronavirus

By ANI | Updated: February 1, 2020 19:00 IST

Facebook has started its drive to weed out misleading posts spreading conspiracy theories and misinformation about the coronavirus.

Open in App

Facebook has started its drive to weed out misleading posts spreading conspiracy theories and misinformation about the coronavirus.

According to the New York Post, the company is aggressively trying to remove posts that claim to offer the cure for this disease, for instance, drinking bleach, as few posts suggested.

Facebook's head of health, Kang-Xing Jin wrote in a Facebook blog: "We will also block or restrict hashtags used to spread misinformation on Instagram, and are conducting proactive sweeps to find and remove as much of this content as we can."

Bogus posts flagged by health officials would be taken down by Facebook, especially the claims that suggest people to not seek professional medical help.

In this instance, Facebook has made a bold move of curtailing misinformation as it was earlier bashed for allowing the propagation of false advertisements by certain political campaigns.

The third-party fact-checkers would determine the posts that are misleading, following which, Facebook would send notifications to warn the defaulters.

New York Post cited The Daily Beast, according to which, QAnon, a group of conspiracy theorists went around on the internet telling people to chug down "Miracle Mineral Solution" to protect themselves from coronavirus. The solution turned out to be a "dangerous bleach" that could potentially kill anyone who consumes it.

( With inputs from ANI )

Open in App

Related Stories

CricketAsia Cup Rising Stars: Pakistan Shaheens beat India A by 8 wickets

CricketShubman Gill dicharged from hospital after neck injury; doubtful for Guwahati Test

InternationalViolence erupts in Bangladesh ahead of verdict in case against Sheikh Hasina

NationalEC lifts model code of conduct from Bihar, seven states/UT

NationalJournalists must uphold harmony, credibility amid misinformation surge: Tripura CM Saha

टेकमेनिया Realted Stories

TechnologyMini car sales to remain below 100,000 units for 2nd year in S. Korea

TechnologySamsung to invest $309 billion over next 5 years

TechnologySouth Korea's SK to pour $87.9 billion into domestic investment through 2028

Technologye-Jagriti empowers consumers: 2.75 lakh users registered, 1.3 lakh complaints filed since January launch

TechnologyCorporate bond issuances rise 8 pc to Rs 6.3 lakh crore till October this fiscal: SBI report