In response to pressure, in March 2020 Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Reddit, Twitter and You Tube announced they would combat fraud and misinformation about coronavirus. In addition to fraudulent websites, misleading or harmful misinformation has been spread through social media.
Data voids have been defined as high levels of demand for information on a topic, but low levels of credible supply. This creates vulnerabilities that potentially can affect billions of users.
Facebook has created a Coronavirus Information Center at the top of its news feed. (Individual websites such as Beacon's have provided their own resource centers.) Google is working to address data voids and fill them with facts.
Both search engines and social media platforms need to take action to prevent harmful information from becoming mainstream. Users should stick to reliable websites for health information; sometimes this is easier said than done.