Earthquake hoax on WhatsApp causes panic
A message about another earthquake and 'dangerous cosmic rays' is doing the rounds
Yesterday’s seismic activity across the country left thousands of residents feeling rather shaken up.
A 5.2 magnitude tremor hit the Gauteng province, with a strong 6.5 magnitude earthquake striking a remote region of Botswana later in the day.
This resulted in a number of tremors felt around the country.
To add to the frenzy, this opened a door for internet scammers to let loose, with a number of hoax’s now doing the rounds.
The below WhatsApp message is currently being sent around:
“Please be advised that the earthquake that happened in some parts of Africa is not yet over because its in rotation form. The researchers under geography are encouraging people to stay awake because a massive earthquake is going to occur tomorrow morning at around 2am. It has been proved that the earthquake is caused by the lava of the volcano that is under pressure beneath the earth’s surface ready to be exposed to the earth’s surface. Countries expected to be affected are Zimbabwe, Botswana, Zambia, part of South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi, Ghana and Madagascar.
Tonight at 00:30 to 03:30 make sure to turn off the phone, cellular, tablet, etc … and put away from your body. Singapore television announced the news. Please tell your family and friends. Tonight, 12:30 to 3:30 for our planet will be very high radiation. Cosmic rays will pass close to Earth. So please turn off your cell phone. Do not leave your device close to your body, it can cause you terrible damage. Check Google and NASA BBC News. Send this message to all the people who matter to you. FORWARDED AS RECEIVEDPS #CancerIsReal”
Readers are advised not to share the message, to avoid unnecessary panic.
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