Facebook took action on a fake story on white vans – but what about these hoaxes?

The platform has come under fire after an unsubstantiated story about women being abducted in white vans went viral - but these stories still remain on Facebook

Facebook has come under fire this week after a hoax story about women being abducted in white vans went viral on its platform. The site's algorithms are thought to have perpetuated the circulation of the story.

The story resulted in a TV appearance on Monday by Baltimore's mayor, Jack Young, who warned citizens that the white vans are abducting women for sex trafficking and selling their body parts, even though the claims have not been substantiated. "It's all over Facebook," he told a local news station.