Conspiracy theories spread over FEMA’s Oct. 4 emergency alert test

An emergency alert test planned for Oct. 4 is expected to affect customers of all major U.S. wireless providers — and conspiracy theories have begun to spread about what could be behind the audio tone set to simultaneously strike everyone’s phone.

The test comes from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Federal Communications Commission (FCC), who announced that they’ll use the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) next Wednesday.

One conspiracy theory surrounding the event — and currently gaining traction online — purports that the audio test will activate DNA-damaging nanoparticles such as graphene oxide.

Fact Check: NO Evidence FEMA Emergency Test Will Cause DNA Damage By Activating ‘Nanoparticles Including Graphene Oxide’#CheckTok #FactCheck #FEMA #EmergencyTest #GrapheneOxide #FactCheckhttps://t.co/nHtHKYC37i pic.twitter.com/RQ9hxoOk4F

— Lead Stories (@LeadStoriesCom) September 21, 2023

“The emergency broadcasting system under FEMA is going to be activated,” says one woman in a popular video shared online. “It’s not a test. It’s going to be sending these high frequency signals into cellphones, radios, TVs [with] the intention of activating nanoparticles, including graphene oxide.”

Another man issues a similar warning in a separate video on X — which was labeled by the European Union on Tuesday as “the platform with the largest ratio of mis- or disinformation.” The man claims graphene oxide and other nanoparticles have been inserted into billions of people around the globe “through obvious mediums.”

Many social media users are urging followers to turn off their cellphones when the test is scheduled to occur at approximately 2:20 p.m. ET on Oct. 4, because they believe it’s part of a larger plan by the government to control the American people.

These conspiracy theories are based on factually incorrect claims that COVID-19 vaccines contain materials such as graphene oxide and other nanoparticles, which have the ability to interact with wireless technology.

“Graphene oxide is not in the mRNA-based vaccines for COVID-19 manufactured by Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna,” said Matthew Laurens, a pediatric infectious disease specialist with the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

“Graphene oxide was used to study vaccine structure only, and is not part of the vaccine formulation,” he added in a statement Monday.

There’s also no evidence that graphene oxide can be “activated,” according to Julia Greer, a materials science professor at the California Institute of Technology. Greer, who has used graphene oxide in her own research, also says the claim of wireless interaction is “nonsense.”

The FEMA tests have already been happening with regularity for years, with no reported health effects from the system’s signals.

The purpose of such national tests, which are federally required every three years, is to ensure the system is a viable means of warning the public about national emergencies.

With News Wire Services