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Coronavirus 2019 (Covid -19) - Reliable Information Resources: Fighting Misinformation

Fighting Misinformation

As with any major news story, misinformation, fraud, and hoaxes are a problem. This page will help you learn to spot COVID-19 misinformation and direct you to resources tracking and exposing related fraud and hoaxes.

SIFT

Learn to recognize misinformation using the SIFT Assessment Method developed by digital literacy expert Michael Caulfield, director of blended and online learning at Washington State University.

Fact Check

Five quick ways to double-check online information

  1. If a story is too good to be true, it probably is. False and misleading stories spread like wildfire because lies can be more appealing than the truth.
  2. Use reverse image search to verify pictures. Real photographs that have not been edited at all can get reshared to fit a new narrative and spread misinformation. There are several reverse image search tools including Google Reverse Image Search. To begin, go to images.google.com, click the camera icon, and either paste in the URL for an online image, upload an image from your hard drive, or drag an image from another window. Click here and scroll down for more image search tools.
  3. Use thumbnail images to verify videos. You can take several thumbnail images from any video and use reverse image search to check whether it's been posted online before. (Use Amnesty International's new extraction tool.)
  4. Not all research is created equal. Always check with official sources (click here for some suggestions.) Just because something has a chart or a table doesn't mean it's true.
  5. Use geolocation to double-check places. Good observation skills and online searching can quickly check the location of a photo or video. Click here for more information; get started here.

Source: First Draft News