Facebook has started deleting posts that contain false claims about the coronavirus, especially ones spreading dangerous misinformation about treatment - such as that drinking bleach cures the virus - and incorrect advice about available health resources.

Axar.az reports citing foreign media that this policy change, announced in a blog post, marks a welcome break from Facebook’s usual approach to false information. At best, misinformation flagged by its global team of fact-checkers has been downgraded in news feeds.

But this still allows falsehoods to spread across the network and pop up in searches. Facebook started downgrading posts containing false information about the coronavirus last week but misinformation continued to be shared in private groups set up to discuss the outbreak. This appears to have prompted Facebook to begin removing offending posts entirely.