Bad information
You cannot tell what is true
The part of modern conflict that reaches your house first, and the only part you can beat without buying anything.
Certain. Every incident in every country now comes with a second incident made of rumours, and that one arrives faster.
What it looks like
Not obvious lies. A real photograph from a different country. A real quote from four years ago. A real official account, screenshotted and edited. A number with no source that everyone repeats.
It spreads because people who are worried and want to help are the best possible carriers. That is not a character flaw. It is the design.
Three questions that catch nearly everything
- Who is telling me this, and how would they know?
- When did this happen? Search a distinctive phrase from it and see if the date matches.
- What am I being asked to do? Panic buy, move money, share urgently, or hate someone specific. Those four are the tells.
Pick your sources on a calm day
Decide now, while nothing is happening, which two or three sources you will believe when something is. Write them down. It is much harder to do well at eleven at night with a phone full of shouting.
A good set is: your national emergency alert, your public service broadcaster, and your local authority or emergency management office. All three are free and none of them are trying to get a reaction out of you.
The rule we use ourselves
We do not publish anything about an unfolding event until an official source has said it, and we say plainly when we do not know. If that makes us slower than your feed, good. Slower is the product.
If life is at risk, call 999 or 112 first. Everything on this page comes second.