I began a search on Amazon earlier this week and accidentally typed in two letters: iv. Amazon helpfully compiled suggestions for search results. Nearly all of them were for horse deworming versions of the drug, ivermectin. This drug is the focus of an anti-vaccine misinformation story. It's a false cure that hucksters are touting to make quick money.
Craig Andrews, an Amazon spokesperson, told The Verge this evening that Amazon's autocomplete responses are driven primarily by customer activity. These concerns are being addressed by us blocking certain autocomplete responses.
Amazon, TikTok and Reddit have not put a stop to the spread of COVID-19 misinformation. Amazon, unlike these platforms, has done little to stop the spread of COVID-19 misinformation.
Amazon isn't the only one that uses an algorithm to drive its autocomplete results. Google and other companies have discovered that there are data gaps for search terms that were not popular before they can suddenly affect the algorithm. Google has taken steps to address the problem of data voids, including warning search results about the possibility. Amazon's search results still display entries for ivermectin as of the publication date of this article.
Amazon lists many ways to purchase the drug that is used to treat animals. It does not provide any information about its potential dangers for humans if you click on one of these suggested search terms. There are many legitimate uses of ivermectin for humans. However, COVID-19 treatment is not one. It should be obvious that the veterinary version of ivermectin is very dangerous. But that's exactly what's happening.
According to the Mississippi Department of Health, at least 70% of recent poison control calls were related to livestock and animal formulations.
According to the FDA, side effects of Ivermectin include skin rash, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, stomach or limb swelling, dizziness, seizures, brain injury (hepatitis), sudden drop blood pressure, severe skin eruptions, and possibly hospitalization.
You are not a horse. You are not a horse. You're not a cow, you guys. Stop it. https://t.co/TWb75xYEY4 U.S. FDA (@US_FDA) August 21, 2021
While other platforms may have made an effort to present information boxes that provide reliable and trustworthy information about COVID-19, and COVID-19 treatment options, Amazon does not display such information in its search results or on the product pages for ivermectin. Amazon spokesperson told me that Amazon does not display any information about ivermectin if you search for it for covid.
Amazon appears to be monitoring at least some product listings for potential problems. Many of the top searches for ivermectin include very few reviews. You will find many reviews that clearly discuss the drug's use in humans if you scroll down. For example, one review said that it worked well on his 200lb horse.
Reddit saw more than 100 subreddits go dark today to protest the refusal of Facebook to ban COVID-19-related communities. TikTok seems to be playing whack a mole with videos on its platform. Facebook has struggled against misinformation as people resort to euphemisms such as moo juice to enforce its policies.
Amazon makes it easy to search for veterinary ivermectin. However, there is no science-based information available that would inform consumers about the risks of using a drug meant for animals. You can still purchase it on Amazon, with some cases of free Amazon Prime delivery and fulfillment by an Amazon warehouse.
