Unsure about beauty products sold online? #FactsTalk has a few reminders

In the era of online shopping, it’s never been easier to shop for beauty and wellness products. While this is convenient, it brings with it the risk of purchasing fake products with misleading claims.
 
How do you stay safe and easily identify which ones are legit and reliable?
 
Enter “Facts Talk.” The new anti-misinformation series just put out the first episode of its six-part launch campaign delving into fake beauty and medical products.

Its opening salvo features Jillian Ward and Andre Paras in a compelling skit, showing how many consumers instantly fall for deceptive advertisements in the hopes of achieving quick results.
 
In the skit, Jillian plays Beauty, a well, beauty junkie who wants to have glass skin — a hot topic among skincare enthusiasts. Enticed by a product’s claim, Beauty used the “miracle cream” but ended up having painful, peeling skin.
 
Upon checking the product, Jillian immediately saw multiple red flags, including wrong spelling and grammar, no ingredient list, claims to give instant results, and being too affordable compared to other products.
 
Andre recalled that he had previously seen the product in a news report, saying it was included in a list of banned and confiscated products for using a high amount of mercury.
 
In the video, "Facts Talk” reminded audiences to check the verification portal of the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) website to see if the products have been recorded as safe.
 
It also helps if you keep in mind these “R.E.D.” flags: Research about the product being sold online; Examine the content of the post being advertised; and Doctor’s advice is still the best.
 
“Facts Talk” is under GMA DigiLab’s InoculatED project, which won the Google News Initiative (GNI) Asia Pacific Innovation Challenge.

It seeks to use pre-bunking instead of the traditional debunking and fact-checking techniques to educate viewers.
 
More episodes will be streaming in the upcoming weeks, aiding consumers in making wiser decisions, whether in purchasing products or availing services.

—Carby Basina and Cielo Meneses / LA, GMA Integrated News