Internet Hoaxes, Myths and
Urban Legends
I have gotten duped several times by e-mail hoaxes, myths and
urban legends that sounded like they could be true. My first experience was with an e-mail urging
Americans to boycott gas stations for one day and that the oil companies would
be forced to lower their prices. Another
e-mail stated that Hillary Clinton refused to meet with a group of women whose
children died in military combat. I
certainly thought she was insensitive after reading that. I also remember the e-mail warning people not
to use plastic in the microwave because it could cause cancer. It seems that just about everything causes
cancer today so I forwarded it to all of my friends and family urging them to
stop using plastic wrap. Thankfully my brother-in- law quickly introduced me to
Truth or Fiction at http://www.truthorfiction.com. I really like the site because when I type in
a keyword from the story it provides listings with the same topic. I am always amazed at how many hoaxes are out
there. The website labels each story as
truth, fiction, reported to be fiction, unproven or disputed. I now go there anytime I receive an e-mail
that sounds fishy, which unfortunately is almost weekly. Occasionally one of the stories is true like
the photo of the surgeon holding hands with a fetus following heart surgery.
It is important to teach students, family and friends some
techniques for recognizing a hoax, such as:
1.
Be weary of “Send this to everyone you know” or “friend of a
friend” stories.
2.
If the e-mail has a hook, threat, a request for money or “send
it on to at least 10 people.”
3.
They often lack specific information telling who, what, when,
where and why.
4.
When in doubt, the information is probably not true.
5.
They often trigger fear, prejudice, horror or guilt.
6.
It comes across like “inside” information.
7.
If it is near election time, be very weary of e-mails about
politicians.
To authenticate information:
1.
A real virus threat will come from your virus protection
system. Check their website to check for
new computer viruses or worms.
2.
Use a search engine to check on the topic to determine its
truth.
3.
Check out all medical rumors at a reputable website, such as http://www.cdc.gov/