As the crown virus epidemic continues, Facebook has suspended advertising and commercial listings of masks, becoming the latest big tech giant to ban the sale of surgical masks, as part of a joint effort to prevent unscrupulous suppliers from using public crown virus panic.
Rob Leathern, director of product management at Facebook, said: “We are closely monitoring Covid-19 and if we see someone trying to take advantage of this public health emergency, we will make the necessary updates to our policy. We This change will begin rolling out in the next few days. ”
Facebook said in the announcement: “We temporarily ban advertising and commercial listings of medical masks.” “We have banned people from placing health or medical requirements related to crown viruson product listings on commercial platforms, including those that guarantee that the product will prevent List of others infected. ”
Late last month, Jerome Adams, the director of the US Department of Health, tweeted that people should stop buying masks. “Seriously, people-stop buying masks!” “They don’t effectively prevent the public from getting crown virus, but if health care providers can’t let them take care of patients, they put them and our community at risk in!”
Adams mentioned online guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC said it does not recommend wearing a mask for a healthy public to prevent COVID-19 and other respiratory diseases. The CDC said on its webpage about COVID-19 treatment and prevention: “People with symptoms of COVID-19 should wear masks to help prevent the disease from spreading to others.” “The use of masks is for medical personnel and those who are close ( It is also important for those who take care of the patient at home or in a healthcare facility. ”
Facebook also said in its post that Facebook-owned Instagram is taking various steps to address issues related to the crown virus. The post noted that Instagram also removed misinformation about crown virus, and when someone clicked on a tag related to the outbreak, Instagram showed resources from the CDC, the World Health Organization and local health authorities.
Instagram also bans “advertising to take advantage of this situation” and sends some posts to fact-checkers when people search for terms related to COVID-19, blocks some tags, and displays accounts from leading health organizations.
Last week, eBay deleted some crown virus related products. Amazon also said that it is cracking down on sellers who are driving up prices on items such as masks and hand sanitizers.