WhatsApp Slams Brakes On Coronavirus Fake News

WhatsApp is joining the official fight to tackle fake news about coronavirus on social media sites.

The chat app owned by Facebook wants to stop users sharing misinformation by slowing down frequently forwarded messages.

To do this, WhatsApp has put a brake on how many times a message can be sent on.

Once a message is forwarded five times, users will only be able to send it on again once instead of another five times.

The change does not stop the circulation of coronavirus myths but will hopefully make users think more about the messages they are forwarding.

Here are some of the myths about coronavirus WhatsApp wants to dispel:

5G mobile signals are not linked to coronavirus

Vandals have attacked about 20 phone masts around the UK and confronted engineers after reading claims that radiation from the 5G network can increase the chances of coronavirus infection.

This is not true, according to scientists and medics.

Diet fads will not help combat coronavirus

There is no evidence that eating a lot of fresh garlic, drinking vinegar or rubbing your body down with sesame oil or alcohol will stop anyone contracting coronavirus.

Hot air driers and ultraviolet light do not kill the virus

The World Health Organisation (WHO) says hot air driers nor ultraviolet light are effective in killing the coronavirus bug, while excessive UV light can irritate the skin.

Packages from China are not safe to handle

Research reveals that coronavirus can live for around 24 hours on paper or cardboard – far longer than the time a package takes to travel to most places in the world from China.

Holding your breath

If you can comfortably hold your breath for at least 10 seconds, the lungs are in a good condition and you do not suffer from coronavirus. Wrong – holding breath is not a test for any symptom of coronavirus.

Drinking cow urine

Some people assert cow urine has medicinal properties and drinking some will guard against coronavirus. Experts say this is untrue.

Stay away from ice cream

Eating cold food, such as ice cream or yoghurt will not work. The fakers say keeping warm stops the virus, but it doesn’t.

The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus is to wash hands frequently and stay away from other people, says the World Health Organisation.