Is there evidence that COVID-19 is (a) not real and (b) simply a scapegoat to deflect blame for an economic disaster? No, that's not true: The global pandemic that's infected about 1 million people that we know of and killed more than 51,000 a
Search Results (2181) for: supposed
Hoax-Slayer→ ‘Move your Cucu’ Virus Hoax Message
According to this supposed warning message, you should not accept a video called "Move your cucu" because it is a very dangerous virus that will format your mobile phone. The post ‘Move your Cucu’ Virus Hoax Message appeared first on Hoax
FactCheck.org→ Trump’s Spin on ‘Broken’ Testing
While his administration has faced criticism for being slow to ramp up testing for coronavirus infections, President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that the problem was with his predecessors, saying the administration “inherited a broken sys
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Big Pharma Is NOT Behind Massive Infection and Death Rates In COVID-19 Conspiracy
Is Big Pharma behind the COVID-19 pandemic and inflating its massive death toll to create a hoax that enriches itself? No, that's not true: The central data-gathering body, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, does not get its
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Students Do NOT Have To Repeat Their Current Grades Due To Coronavirus
Do students in multiple states have to repeat their current grade next year because of the delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic? No, these are social media "pranks" put out by a website devoted to spreading "practical jokes" on the internet. Th
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Trump DID Sign 5G Bill, But Exposure Effects Are Misleading
Did President Trump sign a bill that addresses the future of 5G infrastructure? Yes, that's true: the Secure 5G and Beyond Act of 2020 was signed on March 23, 2020, but a video detailing the potential fallout of expanding 5G technology is exag
Truth or Fiction?→ Is a $1,200 Coronavirus Stimulus an Advance on 2020’s Tax Credit — or a Loan You Have to Pay Back in 2021?
In the early evening of March 27 2020, news that Americans would receive COVID-19 stimulus checks of $1,200 or higher was a flashpoint of discussion in the reporting of the passage of the the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Florida Did NOT Ban Alcohol Sales Beginning Today Due To Coronavirus
Did Florida ban the sale of beer and alcohol after 3 p.m. on March 30, 2020, as part of an emergency effort to curb the outbreak of COVID-19 in that state? No, that's not true: This came from a prank news generator website. The story originate
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: CDC Is NOT Scheduled To Recommend Masks For Everyday Life
Is the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention planning, in the next 10 days, to change guidance and advise Americans to wear masks in everyday life? No, that's not true: The federal agency tells Lead Stories that no changes to guidanc
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Queen Elizabeth II Did NOT Test Positive For Coronavirus
Did the UK's Queen Elizabeth II test positive for COVID-19 after meeting with Prime Minister Boris Johnson? No, that's not true: After news broke on March 27, 2020, that Johnson tested positive for coronavirus, Buckingham Palace issued a state
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Bill Gates Did NOT Write Open Letter Saying COVID-19 Reminds ‘We Are All Equal’
Did Microsoft founder Bill Gates pen an open letter about COVID-19, saying it was "sent to remind us of the important lessons that we seem to have forgotten?" No, that's not true: The letter is fake, and The Sun newspaper retracted a story abo
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Studies Do NOT Prove Coronavirus Was Engineered To Be A Bioweapon
Was the coronavirus biologically engineered to be a bioweapon as one University of Illinois law professor claims? No that claim is misleading: Prof. Fancis Boyle said in a video interview with "Outside the Box" host Jason Liosatos that one stu
FactCheck.org→ Trump’s Misleading Ventilator Counter-Punch at Cuomo
Hitting back at New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s pleas for the federal government to provide more ventilators, President Donald Trump misleadingly claimed Cuomo rejected a 2015 recommendation to purchase 15,000 ventilators and instead “establis
Truth or Fiction?→ Is a ‘Coronavirus Challenge’ on Social Media Prompting Teens to Infect Themselves With COVID-19?
Amid wall-to-wall reporting on a novel coronavirus and COVID-19 in late March 2020, articles breathlessly claimed that a “coronavirus challenge” or “COVID-19 challenge” was spreading on platforms like TikTok and Twitter, inciti
Truth or Fiction?→ Is Amazon Seeking Public Donations to Fund Sick Leave During the COVID-19 Pandemic?
On March 24 2020, journalist Judd Legum published a tweet claiming that as the COVID-19 pandemic began ramping up in the United States, Amazon.com (owned by Jeff Bezos) requested public donations in order to pay for employees’ sick leave: 1.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: NO Proof That Genetic Mutations Responsible For Coronavirus’s Virulence
Did genetic mutations cause the coronavirus to become more dangerous? No, there is no evidence of that. The claim surfaced in a post (archived here) on Facebook. It opened: Feeling confused as to why Coronavirus is a bigger deal than Seasonal
Truth or Fiction?→ Was ‘The Purge’ Feed Set on March 22 2020?
One in five Americans were on official coronavirus lockdown on March 21 2020, and many of those Americans watched movies to pass the time — leading to a rumor that those viewing 2013’s The Purge spotted surveillance feed video in the f
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Photos Do NOT Show People Falling Dead Of COVID-19 On Italy’s Streets
Does a photo of hundreds of people lying on the street acurrately depict the dire situation in Italy due to the coronavirus? No, this is not the case: The picture claiming to show people dead and ill splayed on a the street in Italy - and as a
Snopes→ Did Nostradamus Predict the COVID-19 Pandemic?
If only people recognized "predictions" before the calamitous events they supposedly anticipate.
FactCheck.org→ Prank Posts Mislead on Direct Government Payments for Coronavirus
Quick Take The Trump administration has proposed a plan to provide direct payments to some U.S. citizens, beginning April 6, to blunt the economic impact of the coronavirus. But a prank post circulating on Facebook falsely states that the government is
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Cristiano Ronaldo Did NOT Buy Private Island To Escape Coronavirus Crisis
Did Cristiano Ronaldo buy a private island to escape the coronavirus crisis? No, that's not true: The legendary Portuguese soccer star has been hit with another fake story as the coronavirus threatens people around the globe. Social media post
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Tom Hanks, Others NOT Arrested For Pedophilia Or Other Crimes in QAnon Conspiracy
Was Tom Hanks arrested for pedophilia? No, this is not true: Hanks, who was being treated after contracting the novel coronavirus, was not arrested for pedophilia and being held in a hotel room in Australia as claimed as part of the QAnon cons
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: COVID-19 NOT A Scripted Narrative To Justify Closed Borders Or Force Residents To Remain Home
Is COVID-19 virus part of a conspiracy that has a scripted narrative designed to justify closed borders and inspire residents to stay at home? No, that's not true: A conspiracy theory on Facebook claims that the coronavirus outbreak is a move
Truth or Fiction?→ Will Americans Go Into a Four-Week Quarantine on April 1 2020?
In mid-March 2020, completely unsubstantiated but frightening rumors began circulating about a four-week-long quarantine blanketing the entire United States, purportedly to begin on April 1 2020. The rumor spread from person to person in individual
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Trump Will Evoke What Is Called the Stafford Act’ Viral Post
Amid growing concerns over the spread of novel coronavirus strain COVID-19 in mid-March 2020 and lack of information from the United States government, corrosive and weaponized disinformation thrived in the form of chain emails, Facebook posts, and te
FactCheck.org→ FactChecking the March Democratic Debate
Summary The first head-to-head debate of the Democratic presidential primary between former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders focused on the government’s response to the novel coronavirus outbreak. We sorted through competing claims th
FactCheck.org→ Viral Social Media Posts Offer False Coronavirus Tips
Quick Take Posts are circulating false and misleading tips on social media — in some cases wrongly attributed to Stanford University — about how people can monitor and avoid the coronavirus. Full Story As the U.S. and countries around
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Onions Do NOT Prevent The Flu And Other Viral Infections
Do raw onions have the power to prevent people from getting the flu or other viral infections? No, that's not true: This is a myth the National Onion Association slaps down, calling it a "wives' tale that dates back as far as the 1500s." The c
FactCheck.org→ Trump’s Welfare Claim
President Donald Trump has repeatedly said that his administration has “lifted 10 million people off of welfare,” a figure that primarily includes the change in the number of recipients of food stamps, but also those enrolled in other progr
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Quarantined Kids in in Wuhan Defeat a Homework App by Spamming it With One-Star Reviews?
In a tweet which became a Facebook post, @zenalbatross reported that Wuhan’s clever schoolchildren “defeated the app assigning them homework” by spamming it with one-star reviews to trigger its deletion from an app store: good morn
FactCheck.org→ FactChecking Trump’s Scranton Town Hall
At a town hall event in the swing state of Pennsylvania, President Donald Trump made several false and misleading claims, some of which we have repeatedly debunked before. He further embellished his talking points on trade with China, claiming China
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: The Coronavirus Test Does NOT Cost $3,200
Does the Coronavirus test really cost $3,200? No, that's not true: A claim that the coronavirus test is $3,200 - and that if a person is unable to afford the test or the treatment, they could die - is misleading. The claim has been debunked by
FactCheck.org→ Social Posts Share Fake Schumer Tweet
Quick Take Posts on Facebook falsely claim to show screenshots of two tweets by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer about the U.S. coronavirus response. Schumer didn’t post the supposed tweet criticizing President Donald Trump’s decision t
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Tax Brackets Explained’ Imgur Post
In late February 2020, an Imgur user shared a popular post on a popular topic (“tax brackets explained”), urging others to “help educate others” on how taxation supposedly works: Tax brackets explained. Help educate others! A
Truth or Fiction?→ Would 38 Percent of Americans Not Buy Corona Beer over Coronavirus Fears?
On February 28 2020, CNN published a tweet reporting that a full 38 percent of Americans — more than a third — refused to drink Corona beer under any circumstances, due to fears of coronavirus: 38% of Americans wouldn't buy Corona be
Truth or Fiction?→ If Your Child is an Authorized User on Your Credit Card, Do They Automatically Start Out with an 800 Credit Score?
On February 18 2020, the Facebook page “Real Badass Moms” shared a screenshot of the following tweet, which advised people “with a credit card and a kid” to add their child as an authorized user on that card — an act that
Snopes→ Is Coronavirus Spreading Faster Than SARS, Ebola, and Swine Flu?
A video clip supposedly showing the exponential spread of a new coronavirus misled some viewers.
Truth or Fiction?→ Rush Limbaugh Claims Coronavirus is No More Dangerous than the Common Cold. Is it?
In a transcript dated February 24 2020, radio personality Rush Limbaugh claimed that novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is no more dangerous than “the common cold,” adding that he believed that concern over the new strain of disease was simply p
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: You Are NOT A Corporation Owned By The Government That Can Be Sold
Is there language, only visible with a magnifying glass, beneath your social security card signature that amounts to a contract with the government? And does the number on the back of the card suggest that you are available to be bought and so
FactCheck.org→ Sanders Didn’t Call for 52% Tax on $29,000 Incomes
Quick Take A viral post claims, falsely, that Sen. Bernie Sanders at a recent debate called for a tax rate of 52% on incomes of $29,000 or more to pay for his Medicare for All plan. He didn’t. That figure was floated as a potential marginal tax r