Facebook is trying to reduce ‘spammy’ health claims

In an attempt to curb fake health news on its platform, Facebook has implemented new updates to detect posts that promote sensational health claims or sell products based on such claims.

“We know that people don’t like posts that are sensational or spammy, and misleading health content is particularly bad for our community,” the company said on its blog.

When Facebook detects an offending post, its ranking will be lowered to appear less prominently in News Feed. The content won’t be removed from the platform.

According to the company, the misleading posts are identified by detecting common phrases used in sensationalised health claims.

“Pages should avoid posts about health that exaggerate or mislead people and posts that try to sell products using health-related claims,” Facebook noted.

The updates came into effect last month.

Feature image: Facebook