A widely-viewed ad on Facebook urges people to buy ultraviolet light wands to protect themselves during the coronavirus pandemic. But experts say that although UV light can be used against the virus, it can also damage unprotected eyes and skin, while the ad links to a webpage that falsely claims endorsement from US health authorities and a doctor.
"The virus is HIGHLY transmissible and easily spread. Masks and the '6 feet rule' are not effective," says the text of the ad, which has been on Facebook since July 6, 2020, referring to social distancing aimed at curbing the spread of the novel coronavirus.
"Are you doing EVERYTHING you can to protect your family? If you dont have this, then you aren't," it says.
A screenshot taken on July 15, 2020 shows an ad on Facebook
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The ad also includes a short video that claims the product "eliminates 99.9% of viruses and bacteria in just 10 seconds."
The novel coronavirus -- which has killed more than 581,000 people worldwide since it emerged in China in 2019 -- has provided fertile ground for false information, as well as opportunities for those seeking to profit off widespread fear of COVID-19, the disease it causes.
But experts say UV light can pose a risk to users if it is used to disinfect bare skin, as pictured in a webpage linked to in the ad.
A screenshot taken on July 15, 2020 appears to show UV light being used on a child's hand
"Any UV light source powerful enough to disinfect viruses would come with a substantial risk of causing skin cancer," Dr. Benjamin Neuman, an expert in coronaviruses who chairs the Biological Sciences department at Texas A&M University-Texarkana, told AFP by email.
"This is a very bad idea to use near people," he said.
And while UV could be used to disinfect surfaces, "the risk is that reflected UV light could still cause damage to skin cells, so it is probably not a thing you would want to use without some kind of eye and skin protection," he said.
The video included in the ad pictures people who do not have any visible protection either using or holding the wands.
Dr. Julian Leibowitz, an expert in coronaviruses who is a professor of microbial pathogenesis and immunology at Texas A&M's College of Medicine, made a similar point.
"You can kill coronaviruses with UV but using it on your hands is a bad idea and I doubt that 10 seconds is adequate," he said by email, referring to the claim in the ad that the product would be effective in less than that amount of time.
The World Health Organization also specifically warns that UV lamps "should NOT be used to disinfect hands or other areas of your skin."
The ad is by a Facebook page run from Italy called Super Charged Cleaning that was created on June 20. It says: "The number one best selling UV-C light is finally here. Protect your family from harmful germs in a matter of seconds."
The ad includes links that intermittently direct to either a webpage that provides further details about the UV wands, or one that sells "CITRUS SCENTED ALL-PURPOSE CLEANER."
The webpage that is focused on the UV wands contains multiple false claims, including that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urges people to use UV light to protect against the coronavirus.
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"CDC Urges US Households To Use UV-C Light To Protect Their Families From The Second Wave," the webpage says.
But the CDC said via email that "the efficacy of alternative disinfection methods, such as ultrasonic waves, high intensity UV radiation, and LED blue light against COVID-19 virus is not known."
"CDC only recommends use of the surface disinfectants identified on List N against the virus that causes COVID-19," it said.
The webpage also claims the UV wands have been endorsed by Dr. Wesley Long, medical director of diagnostic microbiology at Houston Methodist, quoting him as saying: "I have personally bought the Super Charged UV-C wand. It has been lab tested independently and is made in the United States."
This too is false.
"Dr. Long did not say these things nor did he ever use this product and does not endorse it," Lisa Merkl, a spokeswoman for Houston Methodist, said by email.
And the webpage says that the UV wand was named "best home sterilizing product 2020" by "U.S.A. Consumer Report," a possible reference to Consumer Reports, an organization that provides independent reviews of products.
But "Consumer Reports has not reviewed or written about UV wands, nor does such an accolade exist," its director of communications, Barrie Rosen, said by email.
AFP Fact Check has debunked more than 560 examples of false or misleading information about the novel coronavirus crisis. A complete list of our fact checks on the topic in English can be found here.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by BOOM staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
