PAJPH Special Issue: Infodemiology

The global community is facing a major challenge as a highly infectious virus is spreading globally. At the same time, a deluge of information, including misleading or false content is spreading even faster through the internet, social networks, and the media, dangerously altering risk perceptions and disseminating false information about the disease, potential cures, and probable sources. There is an increasing awareness that the surge of excessive, false or misleading information may pose new and serious threats to global health that should be adequately tackled through major research efforts and carefully targeted, evidence-based policy interventions.

Due to its consequences at the global scale and its analogies with the transmission mechanisms of a pandemic, the term “infodemic” is used to denote a rapid, large-scale dissemination of all kinds of health information and misinformation. This overabundance of information – some accurate and some not – makes it harder for people to find trustworthy sources and reliable guidance when needed. When an infodemic occurs during an epidemic, its potential threat for public health is significantly amplified and the effectiveness of the response and of public health measures may be jeopardized....