Social media platforms asked to take much swifter action against fake 5G coronavirus conspiracy theory

The spread of such fake theories has resulted in destruction of mobile phone masts in many cities in Britain

The UK government has called on social media platforms to be more aggressive in their response to "crackpot" conspiracy theories linking 5G networks to the coronavirus pandemic.

The spread of such fake theories on multiple social networks, specifically Facebook and WhatsApp, last week led to destruction of mobile phone masts in Birmingham, Belfast and Merseyside, as well as harassment of network engineers.

"Those responsible for criminal acts will face the full force of the law," a spokesperson for the UK's department for digital, culture, media and sport told the BBC.

"We must also see social media companies acting responsibly and taking much swifter action to stop nonsense spreading on their platforms which encourages such acts."

UK culture secretary Oliver Dowden is set to hold talks with the representatives of social media firms this week to discuss steps that that could be taken to contain the spread of disinformation about Covid-19 and 5G.

British minister Michael Gove described the 5G conspiracy theories as "dangerous nonsense".

Stephen Powis, national medical director for England, labelled such theories as "the worst kind of fake news".

All four UK networks also released a statement on Sunday to condemn the attacks on mobile masts.

"Sadly, we have experienced cases of vandals setting fire to mobile masts, disrupting critical infrastructure and spreading false information suggesting a connection between 5G and the Covid-19 pandemic. There is no scientific evidence of any link between 5G and coronavirus," the statement reads.

The mobile companies added that the proper functioning of mobile networks is essential to provide constant connectivity to the NHS and emergency services amid coronavirus outbreak in the country.

Vodafone also labelled the attacks on mobile masts as "a matter of national security".

The GSMA urged social media and other content-hosting providers to speed up efforts to remove fake news relating to the problem.

YouTube announced on Sunday that it would actively remove videos on its platform that links 5G with Covid-19.

The company said that there are clear policies that "prohibit videos promoting medically unsubstantiated methods to prevent the coronavirus in place of seeking medical treatment" and that it quickly removes "videos violating these policies when flagged to us".