Fact-check: Is this the correct site for the US Diversity Visa Program 2024? No, it isn’t  

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The phishing link is intended to collect personal information of unsuspecting people online.

Writer: Ochaya Jackson

A link circulating on the social media platform WhatsApp purporting to be The Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, also known as the Green Card Lottery, a United States government lottery programme for receiving a US Permanent Resident Card for 2022/2023 is false.

“The U.S.A DV Visa Lottery online Application Form 2022/2023 registration exercise which is the quickest way for all Foreigners interested in immigrating legally to live, Study and work in UNITED STATES. The Resident Card Lottery Program also known as Diversity Immigration Visa Lottery program is a chance for 45,000 people from all over the world to become permanent and legal residents of the UNITED STATES, meaning that they can live. work and study in the U.S.A.  Interested Applicants are to visit the Online Registration Portal. The Winners Will Be Drawn From Random Selection And There Is No Cost To Register”, reads the false message containing malicious link. 

Screenshot of the shared WhatsApp message

When applicants click on the link, they are taken to a one-page website with a form that requests their title, name, phone number, email, address, country, and account password.

Screenshot of the forms applicants are asked to fill

After filling out the above information, one is said to be considered for a chance even without sending the confirmation email listed in the form; instead, applicants are asked to forward the message to more WhatsApp friends or groups.

Screenshot of the prompt after filling the form

When 211 Check investigated the claim link, it discovered that it was not the same as the official US Department of State website for the 2024 Diversity Visa Program.

As part of the legitimate processes for qualifying for the opportunity, the malicious website asks three questions: how well do you speak English, what is your employment status, and what age range do you prefer?

The form for filling out personal information requires password information, which is unusual given that it is not for logging in.

And it tempts users to send the message to fifteen friends or five WhatsApp groups before submitting the application.

Comparison with the Electronic Diversity Visa Program

211 Check compared the information requirements entered into the Electronic Diversity Visa Application Entry System on the US Department of State website to the one trending on WhatsApp and discovered that they do not match. The website’s features, terms, and conditions differ from the official information on the United States Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs.

And the U.S. government warned the public of fraudsters’ operations trying to distort the official program for personal gains, according to a notice of fraud warning published on the Department of State website.

“The Department of State, Office of Visa Services, advises the public of a notable increase in fraudulent emails and letters sent to Diversity Visa (DV) program (Visa Lottery) applicants. While DV applicants may receive an email from the U.S. government reminding them to check their status online through DV Entrant Status Check, they will not receive a notification letter or email informing them that they are a successful DV entrant. Applicants can only find out if they were selected to continue with DV processing by checking their status online through the DV Entrant Status Check,” reads the fraud warning.

“The only official way to apply for the DV program is directly through the official U.S. Department of State website during the specified and limited registration period”, it adds. 

The screenshots of the true Electronic Diversity Visa Application System

Whois Information:

The domain information for the phishing link shows that it was registered on 07 April, 2022. A scam is usually apparent when a site is created around the same time it went viral.

Screenshot of the Whois domain information of the linkin circulating on WhatsApp

Conlusion 

The link doing the rounds on WhatsApp about the United States resident card visa lottery 2022/2023 is false mimicking the official U.S. Department of State’s Diversity Visa Program. It is a phishing scam designed to harvest personal information from people online by fraudsters.

FALSE: This video of player fighting referee during a football match is not from Rumbek, South Sudan

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The video is from September, 2016 and was taken in Zimbabwe and not South Sudan as alleged

A video posted on Facebook claiming to show a footballer fighting a referee during a match at Rumbek, South Sudan is False. 

The video shared online on October 31, 2022 alleged that a player in Rumbek fought a match referee after being red carded.

“A football referee was beaten by a player in Rumbek after issuing him a straight red card.

According to the player, he says the referee was against him for nothing,” reads the caption of the post we are fact-checking.

However, we performed a keyword search on Google and established that the video was recorded in Zimbabwe and first went viral in September, 2016.

The video was taken from a Southern Division One league match pitting Victoria Falls Tigers against Amagagasi.

Trouble began when the referee gave a Victoria Tigers’ player matching orders, only for the latter to descend on him with punches, forcing the match official to retaliate.

211 Check has examined a video posted on Facebook claiming to show a footballer fighting the match referee during an ongoing game at Rumbek, South Sudan and finds it to be False

This fact check was published by 211 Check with support from Code for Africa’s PesaCheck and the African Fact-Checking Alliance.

Fact-check: Can paw paw seeds ward off malaria? No, scientifically unproven

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Writer: Jibi Moses

A Facebook post by Mr. Chia, a page that concentrates on foods and nutrition claimed on 14th October 2022 that Papaya seeds are a medication for Malaria.

The post that has since attracted 13 reactions, 3 comments and 2 shares carries a picture of a ripe pawpaw with the caption ‘ward off malaria with paw paw seeds’.

The post further claims that the paw paw seeds have more health benefits as in being a powerful antioxidant, relieves menstrual pain, healthy gut, helps in weight loss, anti-cancer properties, and nephroprotective.

A screenshot of the image used by Mr. Chia. 

But, how do paw paw seeds ward off malaria? 211 Check looks at the claim:

The Facebook page, Mr. Chia mostly posts about foods and associated health benefits, and attributes a single food type to be medicinal too many diseases for example, in this case, it named malaria, cancer, healthy gut, reduces on menstrual pain, and protects the kidneys. In another post they wrote on sugarcane, explaining similar benefits.

However, there’s no clear dosage for the patient who is taking the medication in the page’s posts.

211 Check spoke to a medical doctor in Juba, Dr.Gwolo David of Juba Medicare clinic, enquiring whether papaya seeds can help prevent and cure malaria, but he said there’s no proven way that papaya seeds can help prevent or cure malaria though studies have shown its inhibitory effects on Plasmodium falciparum (malaria).

He said papaya, just like any fruit, is nutritional and he advises people to always have them in their diet, but they shouldn’t be eating them as medication. He further advised people to always visit a medical personnel when not feeling okay and take medication as advised by the physician.

Dr.Odol George, a Juba-based physician, had an answer not different from that of Dr.David.

“What is known is that fruits are good for health because they contain a lot of vitamins which will improve body immunity and have antioxidant elements like Vitamin E and Zinc,” he said.

Efforts to get a comment from the National Drug Authority were futile, as they couldn’t reply to our email. 

What is Papaya?

According to Wikipedia papaya or pawpaw is the plant Carica papaya, one of the 22 accepted species in the genus Carica family Caricaceae. It was first domesticated in Mesoamerica, within modern day southern Mexico and Central America. In 2020 India produced 43% of the world supply of papaya.

An Internet based nutritional WebMD explains how beneficial papaya is to one’s health. Similarly other sites explains in their different as seen here, here, here and here 

An image of a sliced ripe papaya (pawpaw) fruit. 

Malaria causes symptoms, prevention and treatment 

Malaria is spread by a female anopheles mosquito. Most common signs of malaria are fever, headache, joint pains and others. Malaria can be mild to deadly extent if not treated early enough. There many medicines that treat Malaria according to the way an individual responds to the parasites.

The Center for Diseases control explains more about Malaria, its causes, symptoms and treatment in this post. World Health Organization, the body that regulates and coordinates health issues in the world has this to say about malaria 

Malaria treatment 

Malaria is treated with a variety of medicines some of which are Chloroquine, Doxycycline, and Primaquine.

These health establishments give a better and more explanation on the types of medicines used for treating Malaria and these are: CDC, MedicineNet, and drugs.com.

Conclusion:

Given the findings after the comments from the medical doctors and reliable online sources, there’s on prove that papaya seeds are a medication for either malaria or the other said ailments.

The online nutritional sites which are somehow in support of the claim, warn that patients should first seek advice from a medical Doctor or a physician should they catch malaria.

This fact check was published by 211 Check with support from Code for Africa’s PesaCheck and the African Fact-Checking Alliance.