Simple jokes in a small Whatsapp group, or an internet page, quickly transforms into rumours or fake news. According to a study published in Nature Human Behaviour, rumours proliferate very quickly, because of the combination between social media and the limited attention given to topics.
It may seem logic that quality information has a more important role, but fake news run equally or, worse, quickly. In other words, the great volume of information on the internet, with the fact that people have little time to absorb that great amount of information, causes the proliferation of rumours and fake news in the online world.
Other study, written by MIT searchers (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), points that rumours and fake news have 70% more chance to be shared that the real ones. Moreover, rumours are spread six times more on the internet than true news.
We can receive rumours even via Facebook Messenger or Whatsapp.
But how can we avoid its dissemination?
Verify if the message was redirected
Redirected messages help to understand if they were written by a friend or familiar or if it came from other person we probably don’t know. We must check that facts when we’re not sure of who has written the original message.
Check photos and other multimedia contents
It’s very easy to edit photos, videos and audios only to spread rumours. It’s a good idea to search if that content is being shared in trustable platforms.
Pay attention to suspected messages
Many messages or hyperlinks with rumours have grammatical or spelling errors or the text doesn’t make sense or inst cohesive. Moreover, if the message forces to click on the link, we must suspect.
Be careful with prejudices and influences
We must be careful with information which confirms our pre-existing beliefs or prejudices; we have to verify the facts before we share the information we get. Usually, they are unbelievable stories and, frequently, fake.
News shared many times
When a message is shared many times, it doesn’t mean it is true; on the contrary. We must pay attention and even when the sender asks us to redirect the message, we must not do it, if we consider it suspicious.
Check other sources
When we are not sure about the veracity of a message, we may make an online research on trustable websites, if the story exists or not.
Help to stop the dissemination
When we see something fake, we must talk with the person who sent it to us and check with them the information before sharing. If any contact or group, for example on Whatsapp, shares several fake news, we can report them.
Help who is in danger
If we know someone’s in emotional and physical danger, because of the rumours, we have to contact local authorities, so that they offer assistance in these cases.