A popular U.S.-based social media account promoted the debunked conspiracy theory that a polio vaccine created by Bill Gates left 496,000 children in India paralyzed. The post has received over 16,000 engagements and was shared by social media users in many countries.
A video that is trending across multiple social media platforms claims to show a young child who was severely injured by a polio vaccine. The most popular post received over 70,000 engagements, including nearly 5,000 responses. Many comments argued that vaccines are unnecessary because God gave humans “perfect” bodies that can create vaccines. Other posts expressed concern about vaccine safety, claimed that children receive too many vaccines, and boasted about their unvaccinated status.
A social media post with nearly 2,000 engagements claims watermelon seeds can cure polio and many other diseases. Several responses suggest that seedless watermelon is promoted to keep people unhealthy.
Social media users in Kenya are discussing reports that international aid cuts and their government’s failure to fulfill its co-financing agreement with the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization may lead to vaccine shortages and a “vaccination crisis.” Some posts criticized the government’s “reckless failure” and alleged mismanagement of funds, while others argue that vaccines are unnecessary or dangerous “bioengineered stuff.” Multiple posts claimed that the vaccine shortage is “good” and promoted the conspiracy theory that Bill Gates uses free vaccines to influence the country.
In a recent social media post, a parent describes his experience refusing polio drops for his child. He claims the polio worker returned to his house with police officers who pressured him to vaccinate his child. The post questions why polio workers force parents to vaccinate and accuses the government of ignoring other public health issues. Responses to the post label the incident “state terrorism,” with some calling for a social media protest. Several comments suggested that forced polio vaccinations are part of a global conspiracy to harm Pakistani children.
A forum user asked for help debunking false claims about vaccines, stating that a friend sent them evidence that “most, if not all, vaccines are bad.” The user cited a cVDPV outbreak in Sudan as proof of the claim. The user and several commenters mistakenly believe that the oral polio vaccine is linked to polio outbreaks in people who are vaccinated.
A video on social media discusses an Indonesian Islamic clerical council’s 2018 ruling that vaccines contain ingredients that are not halal (permissible in Islam). The ruling was linked to a decline in vaccination rates and a measles outbreak that killed 72 children. The account sharing the video alleges that the public has been misled about vaccines’ safety and religious permissibility. The post falsely suggests that many vaccines contain monkey cells and that the polio vaccine contains the virus SV40. Responses to the video argue that vaccines’ status in Islam is “unclear” (syubhat) and that vaccines are not “good or pure” (tayyib) due to their alleged “dirty” origin.
Concerns and conspiracy theories about the importance of polio vaccines and the motivations of internationally funded campaigns circulated online. In Pakistan, news that nearly 42,000 parents in Karachi refused polio drops for their children drew mixed responses. While some criticized those who refuse to vaccinate, many argued that Pakistan has bigger priorities, such as access to clean water, air quality issues, and other diseases. Some posts accuse Bill Gates of using polio vaccines to control the population, while others promoted anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, including claims that polio vaccines are part of a Jewish conspiracy (yahudi sazish) to harm children.