FALSE: Video shows nanobots inside COVID-19 vaccines

At a glance

• Claim: A video circulating on Facebook shows nanobots inside COVID-19 vaccines. These nanobots can supposedly alter human DNA.
• Rating: FALSE
• The facts: The video shows an experiment on self-assembling wires, which was originally uploaded to YouTube in 2015. The Department of Health also says COVID-19 vaccines do not contain any material that can alter a person’s genetic material.
• Why we fact-checked this: Claim Check flagged at least six separate Facebook posts that contain the video. As of writing, the videos have 126,952 combined views on Facebook.

Complete details

A video circulating on Facebook falsely claims that COVID-19 vaccines contain nanobots that can alter a human’s DNA. The video was shared as early as Friday, September 10.

The video says that nanobots are the reason why people’s bodies become magnetic after vaccination. It also mentions the Bible, particularly the book of Daniel, supposedly to support its claim.

Claim Check, Facebook’s monitoring tool that identifies potentially dubious posts, flagged at least six separate posts that contain the video. As of writing, these videos have 126,952 combined views and over 12,580 combined shares.

This is false.

A reverse image search shows that the clip of the supposed material inside the COVID-19 vaccines was taken from a video of an experiment on self-assembling wires uploaded to YouTube in 2015 by the Stanford Complexity Group.

The development of COVID-19 vaccines started only in 2020.

On Wednesday, September 15, the Department of Health (DOH) also refuted the claim about the vaccines containing nanobots.

“Dumaan sa masusing proseso at pag-aaral ng mga eksperto ang lahat ng bakuna, at hindi ito naglalaman ng kahit anumang manipulasyon o bagay na makapagbabago sa genetic code o DNA ng isang tao,” the DOH said.

(All of the available COVID-19 vaccines went through a rigorous process and scrutiny by experts. None of the vaccines contain any manipulation nor material that can alter the genetic code or the DNA of a human being.)

The DOH added that all of the COVID-19 vaccines currently being administered in the country had received emergency use authorization, proving their safety and efficacy against COVID-19.

In May, Rappler debunked the claim that COVID-19 vaccines make a person’s body magnetic. Rappler also fact-checked a related claim in December 2020 that said Moderna’s vaccine could alter human DNA. This was also rated false. – Pauline Macaraeg/Rappler.com

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