Facebook says it will no longer show health groups in recommendations

Facebook Inc will no longer show health groups in its recommendations, the social media giant said on Thursday, in a bid to protect its users from getting false health-related information circulating in such groups.

Over the last year, the company took down more than 1 million groups that violated Facebook's policies on misinformation and harmful content, it said in a blog post.

Misleading health content has racked up an estimated 3.8 billion views on Facebook over the past year, peaking during the Covid-19 pandemic, advocacy group Avaaz said in a report last month.

Facebook, under pressure to curb misinformation on its platform, has made amplifying credible health information a key element of its response. It has also started removing misinformation about the novel coronavirus outbreak, which it said could cause imminent harm.

The world's biggest social network said last month it removed nearly 800 QAnon conspiracy groups for posts celebrating violence, showing intent to use weapons, or attracting followers with patterns of violent behavior.