Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Friday, Aug 08, 2025

Covid-19 vaccine misinformation being spread easily via TikTok Sounds, targets people of color – UK think tank

Covid-19 vaccine misinformation being spread easily via TikTok Sounds, targets people of color – UK think tank

A London-based think tank has said that TikTok is being used to distribute and promote misinformation about Covid-19 vaccines as the “Sounds” feature allows dubious audio content to proliferate with ease.
On Monday, the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), a think tank focused on extremism, published a report claiming that a feature known as TikTok Sounds is allowing vaccine misinformation to proliferate as multiple users can re-use previously recorded audio content.

A team at ISD looked at 124 videos which used speech originating from four particular TikTok videos, two of which had been removed by the platform for breaking rules on misinformation and fueling fears about Covid-19 vaccine side-effects. More than 20 million people had viewed the 124 videos, ISD said.

“There’s a part of the content which is still able to travel,” said Ciaran O’Connor, the ISD report’s lead, given the ability of TikTok users to make their own video using someone else’s sounds.

O’Connor took one example in which a user had posted a video stating that they wouldn’t take a Covid-19 vaccine because it had only taken a year to develop, despite people waiting 40 years for HIV vaccines. While the original was deleted on grounds that the audio was misleading and incorrect, the original Sound could still be used by other TikTok users.

The ISD analysis also suggested that the misleading anti-vaccination clips were being targeted at people of color in particular. One video showed a black woman who claimed to be a nurse and allegedly developed Bell’s palsy after her vaccination. While the video was subsequently proven a fake by the Associated Press and the original video deleted, the audio continues to be used on the platform. In one case, the audio is apparently used with the caption saying “they want black people to take it first for a reason.”

In response to the ISD research, TikTok said they had noted the report and were taking action. “We strive to promote an authentic TikTok experience by limiting the spread of misleading content, including audio, and promoting authoritative information about Covid-19 and vaccines across our app,” a company spokesperson told Reuters. They also said that three of the Sounds identified in the report had been removed, as well as some videos.

Over the last year, social media firms including TikTok have been pushed to better censor anti-vaccine material shared on their sites, although audio content has proven harder to isolate.

According to its website, the ISD has received private sector funding from tech companies and social media platforms including Facebook, Google and YouTube, as well as government offices in the UK and elsewhere.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
Mediators Edge Closer to Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Agreement
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
Iran's Parliament Votes to Suspend Cooperation with Nuclear Watchdog
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
Explosions Rock Doha as Iranian Missiles Target Qatar
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Oman Set to Introduce Personal Income Tax, First in Gulf
×