FactCheck.org is one of several organizations working with Facebook to debunk misinformation shared on the social media network. We provide several resources for readers: a guide on how to flag suspicious stories on Facebook and a list of websites that have carried false or satirical articles, as well as a video and story on how to spot false stories.
Posts circulating on social media show a pile of hypodermic needles and falsely identify the site as a homeless encampment in Nancy Pelosi’s district in San Francisco. The photo was actually taken at a homeless camp cleanup in Washington state in 2017.
A story shared on social media falsely claims that Malia Obama was “busted” for selling “trinkets” she stole from the White House. That story originated on a self-described satirical website.
A meme misquotes Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam on a proposed abortion bill that aims to address nonviable pregnancies and severe fetal abnormalities. Northam, a pediatric neurologist, supports the bill, but the meme falsely implies he condones infanticide.
An online conspiracy theory falsely claims that Democratic leaders coordinated the June attacks on two oil tankers and a U.S. drone and that President Donald Trump caught them in the act. The Trump administration has placed the blame squarely on Iran.
A fabricated newspaper clipping is circulating online claiming a teenage Pete Buttigieg was arrested in the late 1990s for killing dogs. The Twitter user who created the bogus story — and the newspaper that allegedly published it — say the clipping is a fake.
Online posts claim that vitamin C can “stop” the new coronavirus. While it’s true that vitamin C can have a marginal effect on warding off a cold, there’s no evidence that it can stop or treat the new coronavirus.
Online posts falsely claim the new coronavirus can be cured by drinking one bowl of freshly boiled garlic water. That’s not true; there is no cure for the virus.
Online posts have claimed to reveal various “cures” for the new coronavirus. Some are benign, like eating boiled garlic, while others are potentially dangerous, like drinking chlorine dioxide, an industrial bleach. Neither will cure the virus.
A report by a conservative legal organization about voter registration rates in eight Iowa counties has been cited to promote baseless suggestions of voter fraud.
Viral posts are spreading a false claim that a photograph shows Rep. Adam Schiff with the “whistleblower.” The photo was posted by Schiff and shows his family and his daughter’s boyfriend — who is a college student, not an intelligence official.