The false information that conspiracy theorists disseminate on Disease X is generating profits for them.
The World Health Organization uses the hypothetical disease, which might be caused by a bacterium, virus, parasite, or fungus, to get ready for a potential pandemic in the future.
AFP’s research revealed, however, that right-wing influencers in the US are marketing medical kits to gullible consumers as a defense against the made-up illness. According to specialists, the kits contain an untested Covid-19 medication.
Although false information and misinformation around Disease X are not new, they have become more prevalent since the topic was covered at the January World Economic Forum.
AFP fact-checkers discovered that among the myths surrounding the illness is the idea that it is an elite scheme to eradicate humanity, which seems to have started in the US and is currently circulating throughout Asia.
‘Misinformation mongers are trying to exploit this conspiracy theory to sell products,’ Timothy Caulfield, from the University of Alberta in Canada, told AFP.
‘This is often their primary mode of income. The conflict is profound. Without the evidence-free fear mongering about vaccines and government conspiracies, they’d have little or no income.’
Alex Jones, the founder of the website InfoWars, has falsely claimed on social media that there was a globalist plan to deploy Disease X as a ‘genocidal kill weapon’.
He has made millions spreading conspiracy theories, including around Covid-19 and school shootings – but in October 2022 was ordered to pay almost $1 billion (£780 million) to relatives of those killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook elementary school shooting, which he claimed was a hoax.
As Disease X conspiracies spread across China, posts on social media are claiming the government is deploying mobile cremation ovens to cope with ‘mass deaths’.
However, AFP fact-checkers used reverse image searches to show the videos in the posts were actually of pet cremation services.
And last October, the team debunked posts in Malaysia claiming nurses were being forced to take a vaccine for the hypothetical disease.
Back in the US, cardiologist Peter McCullough, who has previously spread Covid-19 misinformation, claimed without evidence that Disease X was ‘expected to be engineered in a biolab’.
He is currently chief scientific officer of The Wellness Company, which has warned people to ‘be ready’ for the disease. Its website offers a ‘medical emergency kit’ for around $300 (£235), which contains a range of drugs including ivermectin, typically used to combat worms in animals and disproved as a treatment for Covid-19.
Right-wing website The Gateway Pundit also promoted the kits in a sponsored message titled ‘Disease X – are the globalists planning another pandemic?’
‘Don’t be caught unprepared,’ the message said, leading readers to a link to order the kits.
Julie Millican, vice-president of the left-leaning watchdog Media Matters, said: ‘Spreading conspiracy theories in order to make money is a grift long established on the right.’
Speaking to AFP, she added: ‘The ones most likely to be spreading conspiracy theories are also looking for a way to take advantage of their audience to profit from it.’
The Wellness Company and Gateway Pundit did not respond to AFP requests for comment.
Conspiracy theories around Disease X, which often go unchallenged on social media platforms such as X which have scaled back their moderation teams, are also building on growing vaccine hesitancy.
‘Since Covid, we have seen declining support for childhood vaccines and more support on surveys for parents’ rights to reject vaccines for their children,’ said Jennifer Reich, a sociologist at the University of Colorado Denver.
Some believers of Disease X conspiracies vowed to reject future vaccines, according to social media posts tracked by AFP, a stance that could limit the response to real health emergencies.
Chunhuei Chi, a professor of global health at Oregon State University, added: ‘Disinformation can also lead to some segments of the population taking up either ineffective or even harmful measures during an epidemic.
‘It can become a major barrier for a society to be proactive in preparing and preventing an emerging contagious disease.’
