1. You check your phone soon after you've woken up and your friend has texted: 'Did you hear? Amul just launched flavoured curd that glows in the dark. Limited edition!' She sends a picture as well.
A. Forward it to the family WhatsApp group immediately.
B. Forward it to your friends as well.
C. Check Amul's official page before doing anything
C. Check Amul's official page Why: Glowing curd, really? A two-second search would have saved you the embarrassment.
2. A headline reads: 'Government Announces 4-Day Work Week'
(Shared by 3 colleagues on LinkedIn)
A. Screenshot and send to your boss
B. Check if it's from a credible news outlet
C. Start planning your three-day weekend -- three colleagues can't be wrong
B. Check if it's from a credible outlet Why: Three colleagues sharing it makes it feel real -- that's exactly how misinformation spreads.
3. You receive an email: 'Congratulations! You've won a free iPhone 16 Pro' from Apple-Offers-India@gmail.com
A. Delete without opening -- a gmail address for Apple is a red flag.
B. Click to claim before the offer expires
C. Forward to 5 friends so they can claim one too
A. Delete without opening Why: A gmail domain for Apple is always red flag.
4. A viral video claims: 'Scientists prove looking at your phone in the morning makes you 40% smarter.'
A. Share it immediately -- this justifies everything.
B. Smirk -- no real study ever had a number that round.
C. DM it to your mum to justify your screen time.
B. Smirk and look up the original paper Why: Suspiciously round numbers are a dead giveaway. Real studies say things like 37.4%.
5. Breaking News: 'RBI Announces Zero Percent Home Loan Rate for First-Time Buyers.'
A. Call your bank immediately to lock it in
B. Check RBI's official website
C. Tell every home-buying friend before the news dies down
B. Check RBI's website Why: When something involves money and seems too good to be true, it usually is.
6. Your cousin sends a voice note: 'Zomato is offering 100% cashback on all orders today! Use code FOOL100.'
A. Open the Zomato app to verify before ordering
B. Order everything you've been craving -- your cousin wouldn't lie
C. Forward the voice note to your building's WhatsApp group
A. Check the official app first Why: Excitement in voice notes makes them very effective for misinformation. Always verify on the official app.
7. A Facebook post reads: 'PROUD MOMENT: UNESCO has officially ranked the Indian sari as the No 1 most elegant garment in the world, beating 194 countries.' It has 43,000 shares.
A. Share immediately with 'Jai Hind! So proud!'
B. Like and move on -- it feels good even if it might not be true
C. Check UNESCO's website and wonder why a heritage body is ranking garments like a reality show
C. Check UNESCO's website Why: 'UNESCO ranked India No 1' posts are among the most shared misinformation in India --it's been applied to yoga, biryani, the sari and classical dance at various points.
8. A post reads: 'FACT: Touching elders' feet releases a mild electric current from their spine that transfers positive energy. This is why the tradition exists. Ancient Indians understood neuroscience 5,000 years ago.' It's been shared 89,000 times.
A. Share it -- sounds scientific and feels respectful of tradition
B. Appreciate the tradition but notice that 'mild electric current from the spine' is not how spines work
C. Save it to use as a comeback at the next family argument
B. Appreciate the tradition but not the fake biology Why: Touching elders' feet is a genuine and meaningful tradition; it doesn't need invented neuroscience to justify it.
The tradition stands on its own. The electric current absolutely does not.
9. A WhatsApp forward reads: 'URGENT: Drinking warm water with jeera at 6 am for 7 days cures diabetes permanently. Forwarded by a doctor from AIIMS. Share before Big Pharma deletes this.'(Sent by your aunt at 6 am with multiple folded hands emojis).
A. Forward only to diabetic relatives -- what's the harm?
B. Ask your aunt which doctor, which study and why Big Pharma hasn't deleted it yet
C. Try it anyway -- jeera can't hurt
B. Ask your aunt for a verifiable source Why: Authority claim + dramatic cure + conspiracy villain + urgency + multiple folded hands emojis -- this is a definite recipe for health misinformation.
'Forwarded by a doctor' is doing a lot of heavy lifting with zero evidence.
The folded hands emojisare not a peer review process.
10. A forward doing the rounds: 'OFFICIAL: WhatsApp will start charging Rs 99/month from April 15. Forward this message to 10 groups in the next 24 hours to keep your account free permanently.' You see this message in seven of your groups.
A. Forward to all groups -- better safe than sorry
B. Notice that forwarding a message has never once activated a software feature in the history of technology
C. Forward to a few select groups. Why should everyone benefit?
B. Notice the technical absurdity Why: This exact message has circulated in India since 2013 -- only the amount and deadline change.
Forwarding has never unlocked anything. If it could, engineers would be very confused about their jobs.
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