to be fed up of people not checking the truth of warnings before they share them?

[gremlindolphin]

There are some brilliant sites like hoax-slayer, snopes etc but friends keep on sharing rubbish links on facebook and by email which I think are just designed to scare people. It also detracts from the real things which it can be beneficial to share.

I just commented to one friend that her link was a hoax and she said that she thought it was better to share it anyway in case it did happen!

YANBU! They clearly have Internet access. How hard is it to check if the rubbish they are spreading has an ounce of truth in it?

Memorable mention: Don't get close to barbecues or your contact lenses might melt in your eyes. FFS!

YANBU but...

Recently there was an item going around about gangs in the countryside flagging down lone female drivers in our area, so many smug gits posted links to hoax slayer etc because it sounded like a spin on many urban legends. It was 100% true though, and the smuggies, in their quest for outing myths actually made people not take much interest in a true story. It was reported in out local newspaper, my friends who are in the force confirmed the truth, and I know of 2 people in the area who have been stopped.

So, although YANBU sometimes it IS better to share something that could be true than ignore it. Though I agree some referencing confirming truth would be useful and stop the smuggies from feeling the need to enlighten people with the truth.

Yes but....

Some of the urban myths have actually been spread (admittedly unwittingly) by the police.

Also, it isn't being smug to point out an urban myth when that myth only exists to spread alarm and fear.

Friends of friends always confirm these stories - I knew someone who swore that he knew one of the people who had a friend who woke up in a phone box after going clubbing, with a note saying "welcome to the Aids club", which was a popular urban myth in the mid-1980s.

Some of these FB virals are really damaging, especially those which name individual people.

It doesn't take much to check, to google a key word, to look at Snopes or Hoax Slayer.

But I guess the beauty of urban myths is the "need to believe" that people have. It's interesting how they change through the years, depending on the fears of society at that time.

MerryMingeWhingesAgain

I am curious to know what the guff is about the killer part used onions.......

Not that i'm worried, but I like the chance to snort at a stupid myth.

I am so glad I am not the only person who gets hacked off with these things, and that the poster then gets huffy with when I offer a friendly "Don' panic!" message with a link to Snopes or hoax-slayer. I saw one recently about a sick child supposedly having been told that if they got 1,000,000 likes their mum would let them have a new kidney. I spent some time trying to imagine what she would do with it if he didn't get the likes... These things really do exploit the naive and detract from genuine causes worthy of our time and attention.

"better to share it anyway in case it did happen!"

yanbu
There's been some quite upsetting ones too - just unnecessary.

I am amazed that people fall for these hoaxes. I (think) I can spot them easily and always call people on them. (Politely)
I agree it usually takes a minute to debunk them. Fortunately, the original hoaxers are often lazy and repeat the same old garbage again and again.
I use hoax slayer usually.

I think it is harmful to distribute crap incorrect information.

hate hate hate!!!!

people clearly have no brains... and i have also been unfriended because i linked to snopes

and yes to the "1000000 likes blah blah blah" crap

and people that share pictures ALL THE TIME! had to unfriend someone that shared 87 pictures in less than 10mins. and did this several times a day

I agree that some of them are just for the factor.

The 'story' I refer to IS true, it happened not to a friend of a friend, but my friend's mum, and when she was sitting in my friend's kitchen shaking because she'd been pulled over and treated agressively by this gang she was not lying. Many locals shared the story, and quoted the paper article itself, named the make and model and colour of the car in question yet still the 'mythbusters' patronisingly said it was an urban myth. And yes, there were similarities to well known myths (the most common being the baby carrier in the road) it's just that it is not always a myth.

It was quite frustrating.

Saying THAT, the mythbusters wouldn't be so reactionary if people didn't circulate myths I suppose.

Drives me mad. I got so fed up of seeing the "use coughing as CPR" that I posted a mildly ranty Facebook post about it asking people not to repeat it as it was dangerous and I got a fucking nurse replying that it was actually good advice.

I asked her to show me some evidence while linking to the British Heart Foundation saying that there was no evidence that it did help....

This is the one about the killer onions, FryOne. Be afraid, be very afraid.

Hate all of those.

Even worse is the ones saying like this pic to stop child/animal abuse and then a pic of a dog all kicked in and bleeding or a starving child.

Some even say crap like 1 like = 1 pay ignore means he will die then a pic of a really ill child?!

I wish 20 years ago we'd had the internet and sites like hoax slayer. I spent a few good years being terrified about 'kidney thieves' when out clubbing - there was no way to check myths out then and 17 year olds pretty much believe all that sort of stuff!

YANBU

The Facebook likes thing is a spammer technique - get loads of people to like/share your page and/or posts, Facebook rewards page for being popular and it can then be used to flog crap. This article explains it better.

I love your name Tempus!

I must have really sensible friends, as I hardly ever see any of these. YANBU though.

I feel left out, more links to daft ones please

The onions one is hilarious. It always makes when I see Ito. Facebook

Someone I once worked with threw a major hissy fit when, after telling me the story of someone working in an undertakers catching some disease only caught by having sex with corpses, I said it was bollocks. She actually screamed "No it isn't, it was a friend of my sister!", but couldn't give me their name when pushed, and stormed off to the ladies in tears when I passed her the phone to call her sister and ask. I guess gulliblity and hormone peaks go hand in hand there.

My personal hate is when someone posts something xenophobic and it says "I had the guts to repost this, I bet you won't!", at the end. I usually comment " I have the guts, just not the narrow-mind or stupidity" ... Yes, I do get I unfriended quite often!

I thought I was the only one who felt like this. thank you mums net. I've also defriended someone who posted a photo of some poor baby in intensive care with something like 'press like for a prayer and share for (I've forgotten what, I think it was a miracle)

........ This is reminding me why I deleted my Facebook account.

I did used to get similar crap by email but I think my pals have now got the message.

Chunkypickle - the one about people with ponytails being more likely to be attacked is actually true. I was recently on tv where research had been done with attackers who stated who they would and wouldn't attack. If you have an umbrella or some such implement then you are less likely to be attacked and also if you shout they are less likely. There was actually a really good summary that was circulated.

All the others are bloody nonsense and drive me mad. I'm sick of linking them to snopes. Some of the most intelligent people are those that repost the drivel. The latest one being the one about a gypsy trying to steal a child at the end of the slide. My local police team have posted it with huge writing at the top saying that it is rubbish and asking people to remove it if they see it and to tell people it is rubbish. I reported their post with the massive writing saying it's a hoax and the first comment on it was "oh god how can people do this" read it you idiot

I've pissed people off as well, ranting about this stuff. Why do people believe it? Oh, it's on the internet, so it must be true. AARRGGHH! And I nearly always link it to one of the hoax sites. FB has it's own.