Conspiracy theories about polio eradication efforts circulated online following reports of the detection of additional polio cases in Pakistan in 2024. Several social media users accused the government of lying about polio and refusing to eliminate polio in order to continue receiving international funding, while others questioned why polio eradication is a priority when other diseases kill more people. Some posts disparaged polio vaccines, blamed Afghan refugees and ethnic minorities for polio spread, and claimed polio is a conspiracy against Pakistanis.

On January 8, Pakistan reported its first polio case of 2025. Additionally, the country confirmed three polio cases and positive wastewater samples in 17 districts, all from the last two weeks of 2024. The new cases bring last year’s total to 74, sparking an online debate about the necessity and safety of polio vaccines in the country. Several posts suggest that polio will never be eliminated in Pakistan as long as the country continues to receive international funding. Other posts claim that vaccines are being used to spread polio and discourage parents from vaccinating their children. Some dismiss news coverage of polio cases as “propaganda.” One popular post with over 3 million views and 25,000 engagements encouraged people in the region to avoid polio by drinking water. The post, which has been shared on multiple social media platforms, claims that polio and other diseases are caused by not drinking enough water.

A January 5 social media post from a person claiming to be an Indonesian physician continues to circulate and generate conversations about the cause of disease outbreaks. The post claims that disease outbreaks, including polio and bird flu, are the result of the release of synthetic viruses. It has received over 200 responses, including dozens in the last week. Recent responses claim that vaccination is part of a depopulation plot and dismiss recent disease outbreaks as hoaxes, a “plandemic,” and part of a “pandemic of fear.” 

In late December, claims began circulating that two new suspected polio cases were identified in Gaza. The story circulated on social media, as one user criticized the “clumsy placebo” polio vaccination campaign. One commenter claimed that people in Gaza should refuse the vaccine because it causes polio.

A video clip circulating online claims to show parents being arrested for refusing to allow their child to get vaccinated. The clip garnered outrage from people who expressed distrust in polio workers, claimed that polio vaccines are a “scam,” and insisted that polio eradication efforts are a Western agenda.

A failed Pfizer clinical trial for a meningitis treatment conducted in Nigeria was referenced in several recent social media posts about the origins of modern vaccine hesitancy in Africa. The 1996 trial was held in Kano, Nigeria, at the height of Africa’s worst meningitis outbreak and left 11 children dead and dozens more with debilitating injuries. In response to a post about why the COVID-19 vaccination rates in Africa remain low, one social media user claims that Africans “learned to never trust the vax,” and another user references a documentary about the Kano trial, incorrectly calling it a polio vaccine trial. A Nigerian physician explained the ethical issues involved with the trial and the lasting impact it had on vaccine acceptance in the country. Notably, because a majority of the family harmed in the trial was Muslim, some religious leaders at the time accused Western companies and institutions of targeting Muslims with vaccines, a belief that persists and continues to fuel vaccine hesitancy. Conversations about the documentary are circulating worldwide.

On December 13, the New York Times reported that a lawyer associated with the nominee for U.S. health secretary petitioned the Food and Drug Administration in 2022 to revoke its approval of the inactivated polio vaccine. The lawyer reportedly assisted the nominee, who is a prominent anti-vaccine figure in the U.S., in screening candidates for roles in the Department of Health and Human Services. The story trended in the U.S. and worldwide, with many people criticizing efforts to weaken confidence in a trusted vaccine. Several U.S. politicians who previously expressed anti-vaccine sentiments attempted to distance themselves from criticism of the polio vaccine. However, some social media users defended the nominee, falsely claiming that the polio vaccine was not safe and wasn’t properly tested.