COVID-19 Misinformation in the Philippines

This case documents the spread of misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, as compiled from a Wikipedia article citing government statements and news investigations. The Philippine Department of Health (DOH) and Philippine National Police (PNP) publicly warned against spreading unverified claims about the pandemic. Authorities noted that individuals spreading misinformation could face charges under Presidential Decree No. 90, which criminalizes "rumor-mongering and spreading false information," or under the Cybercrime Prevention Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 12 years imprisonment for online misinformation. The Bayanihan to Heal as One Act additionally imposed penalties of up to two months' jail time or a fine of up to ₱1 million for spreading fake news.

Misinformation circulated on multiple subjects. Claims about the virus's origin falsely linked SARS-CoV-2 to rabies. Numerous false treatment claims spread, including that boiled ginger, bananas, avoidance of cold food, sunlight exposure, and saltwater gargling could cure or prevent COVID-19; health officials, including DOH Undersecretary Eric Domingo and DOH Spokesperson Ma. Rosario Vergeire, publicly debunked these claims. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo was noted to have advocated the false banana-cure claim. President Rodrigo Duterte's statement that gasoline could be used as a disinfectant was refuted by the Integrated Chemists of the Philippines as harmful. False claims also circulated that helicopters were spraying pesticides to disinfect cities, which multiple government agencies denied, and in April 2021, videos falsely claimed Ivermectin had full regulatory approval as a COVID-19 cure, when it had only received compassionate-use authorization at one hospital.

Misinformation about transmission falsely attributed a DOH advisory linking fake cigarettes to virus spread, which the DOH denied issuing. Regarding lockdowns, a false infographic attributed to the Department of the Interior and Local Government claimed a 14-day quarantine applied to travelers from 20 countries, which the agency denied; separately, false claims of a nationwide "Total Lockdown" circulated and were denied by the Palace.

On vaccination, a 2024 Reuters investigation reported that the United States operated a propaganda campaign using fake social media accounts to spread disinformation claiming the Sinovac vaccine contained pork-derived ingredients and was therefore haram, primarily targeting people in the Philippines from spring 2020 to mid-2021. A subsequent Reuters report found the Chinese Embassy in Manila had separately hired a local marketing firm for a covert social media campaign promoting Sinovac's CoronaVac while disparaging Western-made vaccines. In August 2021, false information that unvaccinated people would be ineligible for aid or barred from leaving their homes led to large, unregistered crowds at Metro Manila vaccination sites, prompting DOH concern about superspreader risk; critics linked this to prior rhetoric from President Duterte.

The DOH also reported that misinformation hampered the cremation process for the Philippines' first confirmed COVID-19 death.