WHO Outbreak News Screensaver
The WHO Outbreak News screensaver shows the World Health Organization's formal Disease Outbreak News, gathered key-less by the pipeline — the official notices issued when a member state reports an event of international concern. It's free, runs in your browser, and ESC exits.
Live preview
Press ESC to leave fullscreen. Settings are saved in your browser only.
How the WHO Outbreak News screensaver works
The background pipeline reads this from the World Health Organization and saves a snapshot the saver loads.
The World Health Organization's formal Disease Outbreak News, gathered key-less by the pipeline — the official notices issued when a member state reports an event of international concern..
It refreshes on a schedule, so what you see stays current.
Colours can be changed in settings; nothing is stored beyond your own browser.
What a WHO Disease Outbreak News item is
Disease Outbreak News, or DON, is a series of WHO reports on confirmed and potential acute public health events across all hazards. WHO describes them as covering events it has chosen to report, not a complete list of everything it is responding to. Publication rests on Article 11.4 of the International Health Regulations (2005), which lets WHO make information on an acute event public when other information is already available and authoritative, independent information is needed.
WHO’s own criteria for publishing are broad. They include events with an unidentified cause that could carry significant international health risk, events with a known cause that have already caused serious harm and can spread across borders, and events of high public concern that could disrupt needed health measures or travel and trade. That is why the feed can mix clusters of illness with undetermined cause and better known pathogens.
Because only selected events are covered, the absence of a notice for a place does not mean there is no outbreak there. Treat the items as an official record of events WHO has chosen to publicise, not a complete surveillance picture, and consult public health authorities for guidance.
A worked example
The World Health Organization's formal Disease Outbreak News, gathered key-less by the pipeline — the official notices issued when a member state reports an event of international concern.
Settings & tips
- Accent and Background recolour the display.
- Run
automation/run.py whodonto refresh the feed. - Press ESC to leave fullscreen.
Frequently asked questions
- Is this real data?
- Yes — it comes from the World Health Organization and is refreshed on a schedule.
- Is a key needed?
- No. This source is fully key-less.
- Is it free?
- Yes — free, no download, in your browser.
- Does every outbreak get a Disease Outbreak News item?
- No. WHO says DON reports are not a complete list of every event it is responding to; it publishes events that meet its criteria, such as an unidentified cause with possible international risk, serious cross-border spread, or high public concern.
- What authority does WHO use to publish a DON?
- Article 11.4 of the International Health Regulations (2005), which allows WHO to make information on an acute public health event public when authoritative, independent information is needed.
- Does a missing notice mean there is no outbreak?
- No. Many events never get a DON, so the feed is not a complete picture of outbreaks worldwide.