Educational pop-up windows will now appear on Facebook and Instagram to stop the spread of anti-vaccine misinformation, according to CNN.
Facebook, which owns Instagram, announced the new feature Sept. 4. Educational pop-up windows will now appear on both platforms when a user searches for vaccine-related content. If the user is in the United States, the pop-up window will connect to vaccine information from the CDC. If the user is outside of the United States, it will connect to information from the World Health Organization.
Since January, there have been more than 1,200 confirmed measles cases across the United States. Several European countries are also experiencing major outbreaks. Public health experts have pointed to online anti-vaccination content as a major factor in fewer people getting vaccinated against certain diseases, resulting in outbreaks.
Facebook's new feature comes a week after Pinterest announced that searches for vaccine-related content would only return results from public health organizations. Earlier in 2019, Amazon removed anti-vaccine documentaries from Amazon Prime Video streaming service, and YouTube pulled ads from videos promoting anti-vaccine content. The educational pop-up windows further the movement to stop the spread of misinformation.