“Don’t Believe WhatsApp Forwards Without Verifying Them”: Home Minister Rajnath Singh
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“Don’t Believe WhatsApp Forwards Without Verifying Them”: Home Minister Rajnath Singh

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Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told the Rajya Sabha in July that the government was aware of “objectionable” material being shared on WhatsApp but was unable to check the spreading of such content due to WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption that disabled

Echoing similar sentiments, Home Minister Rajnath Singh asked citizens on Monday, September 18, to not believe or forward WhatsApp messages without verification.

Singh said information and news that was completely wrong or having no basis was being regularly circulated on social media and many people consider the same as the truth without verifying.

“I want to tell SSB jawans not to believe such messages and forward to anyone without verification as anti-national elements have been trying to foment trouble in the society. We all have to be careful before believing or forwarding them,” he said after launching the intelligence wing of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).

The Home Minister’s remarks come only a few days after BJP President Amit Shah asked people to not fall prey to the “anti-BJP propaganda” being mounted on social media.

“I appeal to the youth not to blindly believe the anti-BJP propaganda being spread on WhatsApp and Facebook,” Shah had said.

However, neither Prasad, Singh nor Shah commented on the rising trend of fake news being peddled by politicians, spokespersons and political parties’ IT cells, including those of the ruling BJP (more).


8 Instances Where Indian Politicians Fell For Fake News

Via ➜ It MattersFake news is everywhere: created by propagandists and shared by susceptible people, it spreads like a virus and dilutes the national conversation. Know about the instances where Indian political leaders shared fake news stories online #In2minutes.

Posted by The Logical Indian on Thursday, June 15, 2017


The outrage that is politician-funded fake news

Fake news is everywhere, created by propagandists and shared by susceptible people. It has diluted our national conversation. In the digital age, every piece of information we read or watch needs to be cross-checked, as the Home Minister so rightly said.

At the same time, it is disappointing that he will not admonish the several politicians, many from his own party, who have indulged in spreading misinformation in the past.

Moreover the BJP IT Cell is infamous for peddling lies and contention on social media on a routine basis, attacking any dissenting opinion with coordination and hatred, all the while spreading lies in favour of its own politicians or against another party’s politician (the IT Cell Secretary was even arrested for sharing “communal” videos). Such behaviour is unbecoming of a party that leads the country and should be condemned by citizens regardless of political ideology.


Fake news consists of news stories designed to mislead readers into believing falsehoods. They are created to spread…

Posted by The Logical Indian on Tuesday, June 13, 2017


While fake news in itself is toxic, it becomes all the more dangerous when it is shared by political leaders – be they Members of Parliament or party spokespersons or Chief Ministers. It doesn’t take much time or effort to check the validity of the content you are posting. We expect a lot from our leaders and they should strive to meet our expectations.

Posting unverified content can be expected from an average internet user or a troll, and perhaps forgiven if this person clarifies and apologises, but when the same is done by a politician, who will have massive online following, it is worrisome. Even if a politician apologises in such cases (some of the above-mentioned individuals even failed to apologise for their mistakes), a lot of damage would already have been done. It is perfectly justified to hold our politicians to a higher standard and demand more accountability from them.


A World With Or Without Fact-Checking

There is a world of difference between a person who shares fake news and one who verifies the news. A world with or without respect for the truth? A world with or without fact-checking? We are what we prefer.Source: Viralgranskaren

Posted by The Logical Indian on Wednesday, July 12, 2017


In the age of information, misinformation can thrive if not checked

Fake news is dangerous to democracy. If the information is corrupted, the national debate is diluted and democracy is weakened. The viral nature of fake news has established a culture of lies and misinformation which continues to grow unchecked.


Good evening, Logical Indians!Fake news is exploding in India, a country which has 50 million WhatsApp accounts and…

Posted by The Logical Indian on Saturday, April 22, 2017


We request community members to be alert and treat the stories they read online with caution. We have a responsibility to verify everything that we share. Let us aim to end the propagation of misleading information.

Creating or sharing fake news is never justified. We have a responsibility to verify everything that we post on the internet. To ensure that our national debate is healthy and well-informed, each and every one of us has a responsibility of treating what we read with a pinch of salt, a spoonful of doubt, and a flood of research.


Also Read:

  1. How To Spot Fake News?
  2. “Fake News” Shared On Social Media Affects The Whole World; This Crisis Needs To Be Addressed Urgently
  3. The Fake Story Behind A Real Photo: The Real-Life Consequences Of Fake News
  4. The Instances When Indian Politicians Fell For Fake News
  5. From Now On, Facebook Pages That Share Fake News Will Be Blocked From Advertising
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Editor : Sudhanva Shetty Shetty

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