WASHINGTON — Health officials are worried about the spread of fake facts about the coronavirus as bogus conspiracy theories have been circulating online.
The World Health Organization is calling it an “infodemic.”
Talk about the coronavirus is all over social media.
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"Where I've seen stories about it is through Snapchat,” American University student Dante Schlemback said.
"I mainly see it on Twitter,” AU student Luke Kvarda said. “It'll be like the headlines: coronavirus."
While there is legitimate information available online, health experts are worried about the misinformation.
Read: 9 things to know about the coronavirus
"There are rumors that are circulating now that are potentially dangerous that garlic can somehow cure it,” AU Professorial Lecturer and Assessor with Poynter’s International Fact Check Network, Margot Susca, said. “It's just not true."
Susca said the fake facts can have economic effects including the false rumor linking the virus to the well-known beer.
"Somehow people have gotten it in their minds that the brand Corona beer is somehow related to the coronavirus so they're going to see a big sales hit I think,” Susca said.
Read: Corona beer sales taking hit because of coronavirus outbreak
Susca said people seeking information should go directly to sites for the WHO and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well as trusted news sources to avoid falling for the rumors.
"Lots of people are sharing this misinformation and believing this information and it's going to have real world economic impacts,” Susca said.
Facebook has said it’s working to stop the spread of misinformation about the coronavirus.
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The social media site said it’s directing people who search about the virus to expert health organizations.
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