To mask or not to mask: confusion spreads over coronavirus protection

Pedestrians wearing protective masks walk through the Chinatown area of Singapore, on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020.

SINGAPORE/KUALA LUMPUR: "Do not wear a mask if you are well" read a warning plastered across the front of Singapore's main newspaper on Friday, as authorities around the world sought to calm panic buying of masks seen as a guard against the fast-spreading coronavirus.

In neighboring Malaysia, the government urged people to always have masks and hand sanitizers ready, similar to advice by authorities in Thailand and Vietnam.