Introduction

Infodemic, defined as a high flow of information, has a similar behavior to that of viruses, as it quickly spreads from person to person, which represents a new challenge for healthcare authorities. The objective is to analyze fake news published in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Materials and Methods

A documentary research was conducted based on the Brazilian Ministry of Health news website titled "Health without fake news". Coronavirus and COVID-19 were the keywords used to identify news published between December 2019 and March 2020. For data visualization, the content analysis approach developed by Bardin was applied.

Results

66 publications with a total of 92 fake news were identified. The analysis found common characteristics among fake news such as the use of flashy headlines and images, alarming data and circular diffusion. In addition, social networks emerged as an important means of diffusion in which, in order to give a sense of truthfulness to news, it was common to attribute the authorship of fake news to healthcare organizations or professionals. News articles were classified into six thematic groups in which prevention methods (32.6%) and natural history of the disease (28.2%) were the most common topics.

Discussion

There is growing interest in topics related to the diffusion of information about coronavirus. Global research points out the importance of identifying and combating fake news by government and healthcare agencies.

Conclusions

Fake news related to coronavirus poses a threat to individual and collective health, addresses a variety of issues and carries potential harm to physical and mental health.

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