MENLO PARK, Calif. — With coronavirus vaccines on the cusp of approval, Facebook said Thursday it will begin removing false claims about the shots.

The social media giant, which owns both Facebook and Instagram, said it will delete posts on those platforms that include information that has been debunked by public health experts or conspiracy theories already known to be false.

“This is another way that we are applying our policy to remove misinformation about the virus that could lead to imminent physical harm,” the company said. “This could include false claims about the safety, efficacy, ingredients or side effects of the vaccines.”

Facebook’s announcement provided a pair of specific examples — claims that vaccines contain microchips and that the shots are being tested on specific populations without their content — as the sort of misinformation it plans to target.

The company said it will not start enforcing the new policy overnight and admitted it will be challenging to combat misinformation as facts about COVID-19 vaccines evolve.

Facebook has taken other steps to try to stop the spread of vaccine and coronavirus-related misinformation on its platform. From March to October, it has removed 12 million posts with coronavirus-related misinformation. The deleted posts include one by President Donald Trump with a link to a Fox News video of him saying children are “virtually immune” to the virus.

In October, the company banned ads discouraging vaccinations, though it made an exception for advocacy ads about government vaccine policies. The company has also promoted articles debunking COVID-19 misinformation on an information center.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.