Websites and social media posts have circulated the erroneous claim that there are “thousands” or “10,000” dead as a result of the Wuhan coronavirus. As of early Jan. 27, the estimated death toll is 81 — all of them in China.
A meme falsely claims comedian Sam Hyde is responsible for the spread of the new coronavirus. Researchers are still working to determine the source of this latest coronavirus, though evidence suggests it was first transmitted to humans from an animal.
Multiple social media posts are spreading a bogus conspiracy theory about the deadly Wuhan virus. The posts falsely claim that the virus has been patented and a vaccine is already available. That’s not true; the patents the posts refer to pertain to different viruses.