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The Ultimate Guide to Spotting Fake News

Do you know when something is “fake news?” If you have half a brain, you should. However, when someone in authority makes a claim, the masses who elected that person into that authoritative position, automatically trust what has been said and spread that fake news. That needs to stop. My mother one said believe nothing of what you hear and half of what you see. And today no matter what, don’t automatically believe what you read.

fake newsThere has been a lot of talk about fake news since the 2016 presidential election, and a lot of controversy from those who spread fake stories for the purpose of influencing hearts and minds and of course the outcome of the election. This is dangerous for dozens of reasons, many of which threaten our democracy and in many cases can lead to people getting killed which has happened many times this year.

Keep in mind that not all people who spread or start fake news stories are propagandists, some are thieves and even more are advertisers. Some people just want you to come to their website so they can get clicks and traffic. Advertisers use fake news, as a way to get more clicks. This isn’t really dangerous to you, but someone is getting money because you are clicking on their site.

Other people use fake news, too, including those who want to facilitate identity theft. There are fake news sites that you click on, and then when you visit the site, you get a virus. From there, a hacker can get access to your personal information including your logins and passwords, bank account information, or even your Social Security number.

Here are some things to look out for:

  • Use common sense when looking at fake news stories. If it sounds too sensational, it probably is fake.
  • If a story is an obvious parody, it’s also obviously a fake news story.
  • If you already know some of the facts of the story, and something seems weird about the story you are reading, it’s very possible that the news is fake.
  • Look at the URL where the story is found. If it looks strange, the story is likely fake. For example, if you see a URL ending with “.com.co,” it’s a website from Colombia.
  • If there is a photo and the photo looks fake, the story is likely fake, too. But, this isn’t always the case.
  • Don’t just automatically trust.
  • The main stream media has been vilified over the past four years. And while their news is often “biased”, it’s not fake. It’s based on fact, but again those facts may be slanted in favor of the readership. Fake and biased are definitely not the same thing.

Look Closer at the Photos

Many fake news stories have photos that accompany them. Here’s how to test if a realistic photo is accompanying a fake news story.

  • Take a screenshot of the photo, making sure to exclude any graphics that are not relevant.
  • Open Google Images.
  • Upload or drag the screen shot to the search area in Google Images.
  • You will then see information about the “best guess” for the image. If the information doesn’t correlate to the story, you are probably reading a fake news story.

You can use this trick in other ways, too. For instance, if you do online dating, you can see if the person you are talking to is actually who they say they are. If not, they are a faker.

Additionally, you can do this with any image that you have. If the Google Image search gives you information that doesn’t correlate with what you think it does, it is likely a scam. Keep in mind that crooks like identity thieves often steal images and use them as their own.

When you are in doubt, it is always best to do a search on the item to see if other news sources are reporting on it, too. If the only place the story is seen is on a no-name site, you should suspect that it’s fake. If it’s not also being reported by the New York Times or Wall Street Journal, it’s probably fake.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

Fake News is Becoming Too Real

Fake news is a problem that is taking the internet by storm, and it ran rampant during the 2016 Presidential Election. In fact, many believe that fake news stories had a strong impact on the outcome of the election. In a survey following the election by the Pew Research Center, a whopping 64 percent of polled Americans said that fake news has given them a “great deal of confusion” about current events.

12DAll of us have been fooled by fake news, and it doesn’t seem to be going anywhere, anytime soon. But, there are some lessons that we can learn from it: Here are five of those lessons:

Fear and the Unknown are Perfect for Fake News

One of the lessons that we can learn from fake news is that any event that causes fear or the unknown is the perfect breeding ground for fake stories. We live in a world where competition for attention is rampant, and headlines are written to make you click. Remember, anyone can write up a fake news story and make it look legitimate, and in many cases, these stories are based on fact. For instance, you might recall the stories of creepy clowns walking through neighborhoods earlier this year, which was actually real news. However, you might also recall that these clowns were going on murdering sprees. This is fake…it never happened, but because these stories appear on legitimate looking sites, people believe it.

Some Stories Fool Us All…

Another lesson to learn about fake news is that some stories are so good or so believable, that they fool us all. You might remember a meme that was shared stating that Donald Trump said that Republicans are the “dumbest group of voters in the country.” Due to the fact that Donald Trump doesn’t exactly keep his views silent and has made a habit of insulting people, most people took this for truth. It wasn’t. He never said it, but many believed it.

Most Fake Stories are Obviously Fake When You Actually Read Them

Most of us are tricked by fake news stories because we never actually read past the headlines. Writers of these stories make sure that these headlines are eye-catching and believable, in addition to viral. When we read a headline of a fake story, we often get the wrong impression of what the story is about. This is on purpose. If you actually click these stories and read them, you will often find that they have a lot of incorrect facts and are poorly written.

No One is Immune From Fake News

You will also find that no one is immune from fake news, and sometimes this news crosses over into the real world. Take the Pokemon Go phenomenon of this summer. There was a fake new story of a man who was stabbed while playing Pokemon Go in a bad neighborhood. However, a few days later, a man really WAS stabbed while playing the game.

There were also fake news stories that Hilary Clinton was given debate questions in advance. It was untrue. However, a few weeks later this actually happened.

Politics is a Huge Factor in Fake News

There is no question that politics are emotional, and this is not just the case in the U.S. It is also similar in Europe. Thus, the emotions of politics helps to make fake news extremely believable.

Many people simply do not trust the mainstream media, so they seek out other news sources. However, these news sources are extremely biased, highly believable, and generally fake.

You have probably noticed that many of these news stories over the past several months have focused on accusing the two Presidential candidates of crimes. There were also many stories about violence between supporters of the opposing parties. The vast majority of these stories were fake, and if you believed them, sorry to say, you were duped.

In our current climate of fear, anger, and hate, the facts are being clouded by emotions, and this is why we are so ready to believe the stories that fall in line with our beliefs. Facebook is not a trustworthy news site. Do your own research, go to trusted sites written by those who are fully researched. You will quickly see that fake stories become transparent once you have the facts.

Robert Siciliano personal security and identity theft expert and speaker is the author of 99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Identity Was Stolen. See him knock’em dead in this identity theft prevention video.