Facebook groups are being “overwhelmed” by hoax posts about serial killers, missing children, and animals, a charity has warned.
Full Fact said it had identified at least 1,200 examples of such misinformation across more than 100 areas in the UK, suggesting the content is being replicated.
One hoax about a nine-year-old boy named Justin Smith going missing has been shared hundreds of times.
Full Fact saw examples in groups from Devon to Lincolnshire, all opening with “Help!!! MISSING Child!!” and the location’s hashtag, followed by an appeal to “publish this post so we can get him home”.
The posts all use the same picture of a boy holding a white dog on a lead, seemingly in a pet food shop.
But it’s not real – and the actual picture appears to be from a genuine New York City police appeal about a missing teenager who has already been found.
Another example appeals for information about the owners of a dog injured in a hit-and-run, which was shared in groups across numerous towns in Scotland.
But the picture used appeared to be from a US vet’s website.
Other hoaxes include a warning about an escaped rattlesnake, urging everyone to “spread the word and save a life”, and reports of a serial killer who “drives a truck with LED lights”.
Both have been replicated in groups dedicated to different communities in the UK.
In the case of the “serial killer”, a photo used in one of the posts was found to be a man from Tennessee who was wanted for completely unrelated offences.
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An example of a hoax post on Facebook
What is the point of these posts?
Full Fact editor Steve Nowottny said they were designed to “terrify…
