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FACT BRIEF

Does a video show a COVID-19 home test kit determining whether the virus is in tap water?

By Sarah Thompson
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NO

A video on social media showing a woman using a COVID-19 home test to test tap water for the virus ends with the reading showing an invalid test result, not a positive COVID result as the video implies.

The test was performed incorrectly, outside of the manufacturer's labeling instructions and intended purpose. This test is only intended to detect the viral protein antigen of SARS-CoV-2 from a nasal swab sample. This test kit is not designed to test water or food for the presence of SARS-CoV-2.

The test pictured in this video appears to be a BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag Card Home Test.

A spokesman for Abbott, maker of the BinaxNOW COVID-19 test kit, told Lead Stories, "Spreading misinformation with deliberate misuse of a medical product during a pandemic is misleading, irresponsible and dangerous to public health."

See a full discussion of this at Lead Stories
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Ohio Department of Health BinaxNOW Home User Guide
Abbott New At-Home COVID Test: Results in Minutes
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Lead Stories
Lead Stories is a fact checking and debunking website at the intersection of big data and journalism that launched in 2015. It scouts for trending stories, images, videos and posts that contain false information in order to fact check them as quickly as possible. It actively monitors the fake-news ecosystem and doesn’t wait for reader tips or reports before getting started on a story.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.