Glossary · Public health
Infodemic
An overabundance of information, accurate or false, accompanying a health crisis. A concept popularised by the WHO that hampers public access to reliable sources.
An infodemic is the overabundance of information — accurate and false alike — that accompanies a health crisis and makes it hard for the public to identify reliable sources. The term, a blend of "information" and "epidemic", was popularised by the WHO during COVID-19. The MV Hondius hantavirus episode offers a fresh illustration.
A phenomenon that doubles the outbreak #
When an infectious cluster makes the news, public attention spikes: online searches, videos, discussion threads. This demand for information also attracts rumours, conspiracy theories and over-readings, which often spread faster than verified information. The WHO speaks of an "infodemic" because this spread, too, follows an epidemic-like dynamic.
The hantavirus case #
France Info's Vrai ou Fake fact-checking unit documented, on 16 May 2026, a recycling of COVID-era hoaxes applied to hantavirus. Four drivers, all debunked:
- the Bill Gates scapegoat, accused of "predicting" the outbreak;
- accusations against "Big Pharma", suspected of "staging" an outbreak for profit;
- reassurance rhetoric denouncing a "media-political panic";
- antisemitic theories, including the false claim that "hanta" means "scam" in Hebrew (the word actually comes from the Hantan River in Korea).
Informing without feeding the rumour #
The antidote, per the WHO and fact-checkers, is not silence but informing with restraint: cite primary sources, draw a clear line between facts and hypotheses, refuse sensationalism, and correct false information without amplifying it. That is precisely this site's editorial stance.
For more, see our breakdown hantavirus and the COVID reflex: same fears, same hoaxes.
Key figures
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2020
Year the WHO popularised the term 'infodemic' to describe the overabundance of information — true and false — accompanying COVID-19.
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4
Families of COVID-era hoaxes recycled around hantavirus: scapegoating (Bill Gates), 'Big Pharma', reassurance rhetoric and antisemitic theories.
Standards & references
- WHO — Infodemic management — World Health Organization framework for understanding and limiting the impact of the infodemic on public health.
- France Info — Vrai ou Fake — France Info's fact-checking unit, which documented the hoaxes circulating about hantavirus.
Frequently asked questions
What is an infodemic?
An infodemic is an overabundance of information — accurate and false alike — that accompanies a health crisis and makes it hard for the public to identify reliable sources. The term was popularised by the WHO during COVID-19. The phenomenon blends rumours, conspiracy theories and over-readings, which often spread faster than verified information.
What hoaxes circulated about hantavirus?
According to France Info's Vrai ou Fake unit (16 May 2026), several COVID-era hoaxes were recycled: the idea that Bill Gates 'predicted' the outbreak, the accusation of an outbreak 'staged' by drug companies, rhetoric minimising the virus, and an antisemitic rumour claiming 'hanta' means 'scam' in Hebrew — which is false, the word comes from the Hantan River in Korea.
How do you counter an infodemic?
Health authorities and fact-checkers recommend informing abundantly but with restraint: cite primary sources, clearly distinguish facts from hypotheses, refuse sensationalism, and correct false information without amplifying it. Silence does not create calm: it lets the vacuum fill with rumours.
Further reading
- Infodemic — World Health Organization — WHO (health authority page)
- Face à l'épidémie d'Hantavirus, méfiez-vous des désinformateurs — France Info — Vrai ou Fake (fact-check)