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A social media post about polio vaccines in Lakki Marwat received many responses calling for a boycott of anti-polio campaigns in the region using the hashtag #polioboycott. The boycott is in support of kidnapped factory workers in Lakki Marwat. Some posts state that peace is more important than the polio campaign. Meanwhile, residents in a village near Makli, Thatta, launched a “No water, no vaccines” boycott to protest a lack of clean water access. Several posts falsely claimed that polio vaccines are harmful and that the disease is only spreading in children who have received multiple polio drops.

On February 3, a police officer was fatally shot while guarding a group of polio workers in the Jamrud district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The attack occurred on the first day of Pakistan’s first national polio vaccination drive of 2025. In response to a social media post condemning the attack, some commenters criticized the World Health Organization and blamed polio workers for using a “poisonous jab” to harm children in Pakistan. In a popular social media post, the Pakistan Polio Eradication Initiative encouraged vaccination. The post received 13 million views and over 1,000 responses, including false claims that polio vaccines are poison and accusations that the polio vaccine is “unsafe” and was designed by the “United States, Britain, and Israel” to harm Muslims. Meanwhile, a video clip with over 72,000 views accused a U.S. international aid organization of corrupting Pakistani religious leaders and politicians. Although some comments supported the agency’s work in Pakistan, others repeated the claim that government workers profit from anti-polio funds.

An Indonesian social media account that previously cast doubt on the safety of polio and COVID-19 vaccines claims that Indonesia’s Ministry of Health is concealing vaccine data to hide government corruption. The user posted several times about a February 4 lawsuit hearing regarding the public disclosure of government contracts, vaccination data, and clinical trial data related to polio and COVID-19 vaccines. The health ministry argues that the requested data is confidential. Commenters on social media claim that vaccination is part of a depopulation plan and accuse the media of covering up the story. One post suggests that the government is “poisoning” its citizens, while another claims that “viruses don’t exist.”

On April 6, Gaza’s Health Ministry warned that Israel is blocking polio vaccines from entering the region, putting over 600,000 children at risk. In response, many commenters called for an end to the blockade, while other posts claimed that polio vaccines are “toxic” and unnecessary during the conflict.

Online posts asked Afghan refugees returning from Pakistan to give their children polio drops. One comment called polio drops “evil” and warned Muslim parents to protect their children. Some posts called polio drops “useless” and a “disease.” Others said that other diseases are more important than polio.

A recent social media post announced a polio vaccine campaign for children up to 14 years old in Tshopo, Democratic Republic of the Congo. In response, some commenters asked why older children needed polio vaccines. One post claimed polio vaccines kill children, and another called polio vaccination “a hoax.”

Global news outlets and social media users debated the role of international aid following reports that the U.S. plans to terminate funding for GAVI. News articles warned that the cuts will threaten millions of lives and lead to preventable disease outbreaks. Several social media users proposed herbal remedies and “natural immunity” as an alternative to vaccines, while others alleged that vaccines harm children and target black people for depopulation.

False claims about the origin of polio continue to spread online following a viral March 26 podcast interview. Some posts repeat the conspiracy theory that polio was created in a lab and spread in Africa, while others promote the debunked myth that polio was renamed, not eradicated. One post shared an image claiming without evidence that polio is actually DDT, lead, and arsenic poisoning; undiagnosed syphilis; hand, foot, and mouth disease; and a variety of other diseases.