Coronavirus: Facebook removes ‘harmful’ conspiracy pages
Facebook has removed the pages of a conspiracy group that told followers the COVID-19 pandemic is a government hoax.
Facebook has removed the pages of a conspiracy group that told followers the COVID-19 pandemic is a government hoax.
It follows a report in The Weekend Australian that detailed how 99% Unite was encouraging its tens of thousands of followers to refuse tests for the highly infectious disease as well as discouraging mask wearing and social distancing.
A Facebook spokeswoman said on Wednesday the page was removed for spreading “harmful misinformation”.
“We have clear policies against promoting harmful misinformation about COVID-19 and have removed this Group for repeatedly violating these policies,” she said.
The social media giant has taken a proactive approach against misinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as targeting content linking 5G to the outbreak.
It comes as Victoria grapples with soaring numbers of the coronavirus, with the state recording a record 484 cases on Wednesday.
The 99% Unite follows and promotes a web of anti-public health theories, including that the coronavirus pandemic is a cover for the elite to solidify their power as well as bleeding into existing conspiracies around vaccinations and 5G technology.
Led by Melbourne based Fanos Panayides and Raphael Ferndandez, the group operated across several pages in an apparent attempt to avoid Facebook’s censors.
The largest page was started in April and boasted more than 65,000 members.
The group, which tells its followers not to wear masks and to reject coronavirus tests, is planning a large protest this month against what it sees as the coronavirus conspiracy.
The personal accounts of Mr Panayides and Mr Fernandez remain active, with the pair recording a video livestream attacking media reports of their group on Saturday.
In May, Mr Panayides was photographed speaking at an anti-lockdown protest in Melbourne.
He has previously told The Australian his claims were based on countless hours of research.
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