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.
A video clip of a U.S. congressperson known for promoting vaccine disinformation is trending online. The congressperson falsely claimed that “studies” show that COVID-19 vaccines are dangerous and shared anecdotes of alleged vaccine-related injuries and deaths. She also argues that children should not be vaccinated against COVID-19.
Recommendation: 
A large-scale, independent review of real-world safety data confirmed that mRNA COVID-19 vaccines may cause myocarditis in very rare cases. However, the study conducted by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine found no link between the vaccines and other conditions, including infertility, heart attacks, blood clots, Guillain-Barré syndrome, or Bell’s Palsy.
Recommendation:
Several widely circulated social media posts shared statements from a physician who chairs the WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization, reportedly testifying that she advised the Finnish government in late 2021 against implementing COVID-19 vaccine passports because the vaccines didn’t prevent transmission. Finland’s COVID-19 vaccine restrictions were in place for a total of four months before the government ended them in February 2022. Vaccine opponents have sensationalized the story to claim that the physician testified that passports were a “scam” to push “fake vaccines” that don’t prevent deaths.
Recommendation: 
A tech CEO posted a meme questioning what happened to all the “dangerous” COVID-19 variants. The heavily circulated image has been viewed over 69 million times. One post sharing the image claims that once mass COVID-19 vaccination ended, the virus stopped evolving, implying that officials only said variants were dangerous to get people vaccinated.
Recommendation: 
A group of activists in Japan reportedly organized a protest to oppose the World Health Organization’s international pandemic agreement, which critics falsely claim will give WHO authority to mandate national pandemic responses. Some accounts claim that hundreds of thousands or even millions of people attended the protests. However, a security risk and crisis management agency noted that “several thousand” attended.
Recommendation:
A popular social media post asks why the general public hadn’t heard of myocarditis prior to COVID-19 if the condition was “so normal.” Responses to the post insinuate that myocarditis was not an issue before COVID-19 vaccines and block users who point to evidence to the contrary.
Recommendation:
A so-called “analysis” of CDC data falsely claims to have identified 780,000 reports of serious vaccine injuries during the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, including Bell's Palsy, heart inflammation, miscarriages, and seizures. Vaccine opponents are circulating the false claim that 8 percent of COVID-19 vaccine recipients, or 18 million people, experienced adverse reactions so severe that they sought medical care.
Recommendation:
A trending social media video features a man claiming to be a rancher who alleges that “live” mRNA vaccines are being tested on livestock and that 26 percent of those tested have had serious adverse reactions. The video claims that the meat from the animals contains “live vaccines.” A conspiracy theorist sharing the video repeats the myth that COVID-19 vaccines force the body to “mass produce the deadly HIV spike protein.”
Recommendation:
A right-wing political commentator claims that governments encouraging vaccination after “the mRNA vaccine was shown not to stop transmission” was “the most evil thing ever done.”
Recommendation:
A circulating clip features a vaccine-opposing talk show host criticizing pandemic mitigation practices like wearing masks, social distancing, COVID-19 tests, and even hand washing, while promoting the idea that natural immunity is superior to vaccine-induced immunity.
Recommendation:
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.
Vaccine Misinformation Guide
Get practical tips for addressing misinformation in this new guide. Click image to download, or see highlights.