Facebook is tackling vaccine misinformation on the social network with a new pop-up that'll direct you to authoritative health organizations.
The "educational" pop-ups will appear on vaccine-related searches on Facebook and Facebook groups and pages devoted to the topic, the company announced on Wednesday. For US-based users, a window will appear and direct users to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for the most "reliable, up-to-date" information on vaccinations.
For everyone else, the window will suggest users visit the World Health Organization's website. Instagram, which Facebook also owns, is rolling out the pop-up windows as well for when users tap a vaccine-related hashtag.
The tech giant is making the change after the company faced accusations it was helping spread misinformation about vaccinations. In February, US Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) called out Facebook and Google for pushing the controversial content to users through search results and recommendations.
In response, Facebook in March began cracking down on the anti-vaccination hoaxes by making groups, posts, and pages devoted to the topics harder to find. As a result, the company is no longer recommending the controversial content in recommendations or predictions on Facebook searches. Ads promoting misinformation about vaccines have also been banned.
Facebook isn't alone in directing users to authoritative sources on vaccine information. Last week, Pinterest began doing the same for searches on vaccines and the measles. The social media site will now only surface results about immunizations from leading public health groups, including the CDC.
In response, the CDC told PCMag: "Combatting vaccine myths and misinformation is a shared responsibility and we applaud these efforts."
"We know that parents often turn to social media to access health information and connect with other parents, and it can be difficult to determine what is accurate and who the credible sources of information are," the CDC added. "Fortunately, these companies recognize CDC's commitment to providing trustworthy vaccine information."
Nevertheless, you can still find anti-vaccine groups on Facebook and Instagram, some of which have tens of thousands of followers. Supporters of the movement have accused Facebook of censorship.