June 09, 2023
South Africa: No Evidence South Africa's Governing Party Will 'Load Shed' Essential Social Grants in 2024
IN SHORT: South Africa's temporary Covid relief grant benefits about 10 million people, but will end in March 2024. But this doesn't mean all social grants, for old people,… Read more »
Kenya: Kenyans, Don't Fall for Scam Facebook Page Promising Huge Rewards for Joining the Illuminati
The Facebook page Freemason in Kenya promises huge cash rewards to people in Kenya willing to join the Illuminati. Read more »
Kenya: Is Kenyan Flour Miller UNGA Limited Urgently Hiring? No, Viral Job Ads On Facebook Are Fake
IN SHORT: Scammers often target those desperate for jobs with fake ads and use names of well-known companies. Kenyans, beware of this job scam. Read more »
Africa: No, WEF Can't 'Hack Your Dreams' to 'Fact-Check Your Subconscious' - Bizarre Claim Misuses Two-Year-Old U.S. Beer Ad Experiment
Is the hard work of fighting disinformation about to get easier with new World Economic Forum tech that can simply insert fact-checks into people's dreams? No, this scenario is a… Read more »
Kenya: Beware of Facebook Page Impersonating Kenyan Government Programme and Offering Loans
More and more Facebook pages falsely claim to offer loans to people in Kenya. Many even use the name of the government's Inua Jamii programme, but be careful of these scams. Read more »
May 29, 2023
Kenya: Beware of Facebook Page Impersonating Kenya's Citizen TV News Anchor Mashirima Kapombe and Offering Promotions
IN SHORT: We've seen it before and we'll see it again - a Facebook page pretending to be a Kenyan celebrity, promising users quick cash for engagement. This one, in the name of… Read more »
May 25, 2023
Africa: No, Hackers Can't Copy Your Contact List or Steal Banking Details Simply By Phoning You - Ignore Widely Shared Claim
IN SHORT: A message dating as far back as 2012 is once again circulating on Facebook and WhatsApp, warning the public not to answer or call back numbers with certain country codes.… Read more »
May 30, 2023
Kenya: Are These Photos of Long-Awaited Cheap Cooking Gas Cylinders Being Sold to the Public in Kenya? No, They Were Gifts
IN SHORT: Photos circulating on social media claim to show distribution of the low cost cooking gas promised by president William Ruto in some parts of the country. This is not… Read more »
May 10, 2023
Africa: No, Photo Isn't of Malaysian Plane That Disappeared in 2014, but of Artificial Reef Off the Coast of Jordan
IN SHORT: The Malaysian passenger flight that went missing in 2014 has not been found and the viral photo showing a plane under water is unrelated. Read more »
Africa: No, You Won't Fall Victim to Phishing If You Share Greeting Messages On Whatsapp. This Old Hoax Is Still False
IN SHORT: Sending a "good morning" message via WhatsApp is harmless and we can prove it. So don't fall for this old hoax, which claims that doing this can give hackers access to… Read more »
May 05, 2023
Nigeria: No, Nigeria's Central Bank Has No Plans to Phase Out Recently Released Naira Notes
Just months after a redesign of Nigeria's currency, posts on Facebook claim the new notes are on their way out. Read more »
May 04, 2023
South Africa: No Evidence Undocumented Immigrants 'Contribute Massively' to Crime and 'Nothing' to South Africa's Economy
Experts say there is no evidence that undocumented immigrants contribute disproportionately to South Africa's crime levels. Read more »
May 03, 2023
Nigeria: Did Nigeria's Former Transport Minister Call President-Elect Bola Tinubu a Drug Baron? No, but Debunked Quote Still Circulating
IN SHORT: Former minister and Rivers state governor Chibuike Amaechi has been critical of his party-mate, Nigeria's president-elect Bola Tinubu. But he did not go so far as to… Read more »
April 27, 2023
Nigeria: No, Viral Photo of Tricycle Not Made By Nigerian Local Car Company Innoson
IN SHORT: Tricycles are popular in Nigeria, which is why a head-turning design would make news and be a feather in the country's manufacturing cap. Read more »
April 26, 2023
Nigeria: No, Nigeria's Supreme Court Hasn't Ruled in Favour of Peter Obi's Labour Party As Video Claims
IN SHORT: A video circulating on social media in Nigeria claims that the country's supreme court has ruled on a controversial petition to overturn Bola Tinubu's victory in the… Read more »
Kenya: No, Kenya's Inua Jamii Programme Does Not Give Loans - Facebook Account and Page Fake
IN SHORT: Kenyan social media is awash with fake Facebook pages and accounts making bogus offers. This account and page are trying to profit by using the name of a Kenyan… Read more »
April 25, 2023
Kenya: Beware of Yet Another Imposter Facebook Page Offering 'Inua Jamii' Loans
IN SHORT: The Kenyan government aid programme Inua Jamii is frequently impersonated on Facebook, targeting the desperate and vulnerable. This page in the programme's name is… Read more »
April 19, 2023
Nigeria: Beware of Fake Link Asking Nigerians to Register for Post-Petroleum Subsidy Aid
IN SHORT: A link is spreading on social media in Nigeria, claiming to be to the registration portal for government aid recently announced by the federal ministry of finance and… Read more »
April 18, 2023
Nigeria: Has Unemployment in Nigeria Risen Fourfold Since 2015? On the Trail of a Cabinet Minister's Claim
Nigeria's labour and productivity minister Chris Ngige is blaming the country's high unemployment on its economic woes since 2015. But is he right about the scale of the problem? Read more »
April 13, 2023
Kenya: Kenyan Lawmaker Linet Chepkorir Didn't Say Kenyan Government Will Print More Money to Pay Civil Servants and Settle Debts
IN SHORT: Many Kenyans are having to count their shillings and cents and civil servants are facing salary delays. But Bomet county women rep Linet Toto didn't suggest the… Read more »
March 29, 2023
Kenya: No, Kenya's Tax Authority Has Not Increased Taxes On Popular Second-Hand Clothing in 2023
IN SHORT: Claims that the Kenya Revenue Authority has increased levies on used clothing recently flooded social media. But the authority says this is incorrect and the levies have… Read more »
Nigeria: No, Nigeria's Central Bank Not Planning to Close Digital Finance Companies
IN SHORT: Digital financial apps have become popular in Nigeria after a currency reform policy hit serious hurdles. But the banking regulator is not about to shut these apps down,… Read more »
March 18, 2023
Nigeria: Nigeria's Labour Party Candidate for Lagos Assembly Bloodied During Attack By Thugs? No, Photo Old, Unrelated
IN SHORT: As Nigerians vote for governors, claims have been circulated online that a candidate for a seat in the key state of Lagos has been attacked. But the photo used as… Read more »
March 15, 2023
Kenya: Scam Alert! Ignore Bogus 'Jobs and Internships' Ad Allegedly From Kenya's Bamburi Cement
IN SHORT: As a large industrial manufacturer in Kenya, one could expect Bamburi Cement to be hiring. But these jobs advertised online are not real. Read more »
March 03, 2023
Kenya: Dividends Earned From Savings and Credit Co-Operatives in Kenya Will Still Be Taxed At 5 Percent, Not 15 Percent As Social Media Claims
IN SHORT: The Kenyan government is ramping up its tax collection efforts, but rumours that Sacco dividends will be taxed 15%, up from 5%, are not true. Read more »