Tag Archive for: #FactsMatter

FEATURED IMAGE FOR THE LAPTOP SCHEME HOAX211 Check

Fact-Check: Viral Link Asking Students to Apply for Laptop Scheme 2021/22 is a Hoax

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The hoax appears to be aimed at students who do not have laptop computers. While the message is a hoax, the lack of proper access to online learning environments is all too real.

By Emmanuel Bida Thomas

According to 211 Check findings, a viral link being shared on WhatsApp claiming to be asking students to apply for laptop schemes is a hoax. The message that has gone viral on WhatsApp does not specify who is offering the laptop scheme.

The claim in the viral WhatsApp message reads, 

“The Applications for the Students Laptop Scheme 2021/22 Is Available

This scheme is open to all students who for financial reasons are not in a position to purchase a laptop of their own and are in need of laptop in their level of education

Students that can apply

-All Students can apply for the helping laptop support scheme

Eligiblity-All countries

20,000 student recieved laptop in 2020 due to covid

In 2021 Over 560,000 students will be given free laptop to enhance their learning this month

Application has began and students that have applied have started gettig their laptops

ONLY STUDENTS CAN APPLY.” 

The message includes a link to a webpage that makes a similar claim and asks students to enter their age bracket (10-50) years, full name, educational level, laptop brand, and age range.

It also claims that if a person correctly answers the question (5+1-2=?) they will be automatically qualified for the laptop.

The website prompts the user to check their eligibility by asking for their name, pretending to verify their identity, and requesting that the user share the link with WhatsApp friends and groups until “the blue bar is full.” The website redirects the user to a spam advertisement once the step is completed.

Request that the user share the link with WhatsApp friends and groups until “the blue bar is full.”

According to a website reputation checker, the website that was registered 28 days ago on 2021-10-28 and is hosted at this IP address: 209.159.145.116 has been blacklisted by several engines, including Avira, CRDF, and Fortinet.

The message or its website do not specify who is providing the laptops or to whom students are applying. Legitimate schemes usually identify the organizations that are behind them.

Conclusion:

It is not uncommon to receive WhatsApp messages containing links claiming that the recipient has won prizes such as a free expensive smartphone or simply a shoe.

One thing that all of these messages have in common is that they all require the recipient to forward it to at least a certain number of WhatsApp chats. However, the claims that accompany these links can appear genuine and difficult to dismiss, such as when they appear to be disseminating information about schemes and use official institution logos.

The above hoax appears to be aimed at students who do not have laptop computers. While the message is a hoax, the lack of proper access to online learning environments is all too real.

THIS IS NOT JUBA FREEDOM BRIDGE211 Check

Fact-Check: This image is not an aerial view of Freedom Bridge in Juba

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The image is of the Stueng Trang-Kroch Chhmar Cambodia-China Friendship Bridge, a 1,131-meter-long and 13.5-meter-wide bridge spanning across the Mekong River and connecting Kampong Cham and Tboung Khmum provinces in southeastern Cambodia.

By Emmanuel Bida Thomas

A Facebook post on Thursday, 25th November 2021 with an image purportedly of the Freedom Bridge in Juba is FALSE

“South Sudan government unveils the new Freedom Bridge in the Kator-lologo area. The bridge is soon to be open before the end of the year,” reads a post shared by Ramciel Broadcasting, a news and media page with over 18,000 followers.

Misleading Facebook post on Thursday, 25th November 2021 with an image purportedly of the Freedom Bridge in Juba

However, a reverse image search of the photo returned several of the same images used for at least two days. The image is of the Stueng Trang-Kroch Chhmar Cambodia-China Friendship Bridge, a 1,131-meter-long and 13.5-meter-wide bridge spanning across the Mekong River and connecting Kampong Cham and Tboung Khmum provinces in southeastern Cambodia.

The bridge was inaugurated on 23rd November 2021 in the Stueng Trang district of Cambodia.

Meanwhile, the Freedom Bridge, named after the independence of the Republic of South Sudan and being built with a grant from the government of Japan is slated to be opened next year on 6th of July according to the Japanese Resident Engineer Omeda Norio.

Here are latest pictures of Freedom Bridge:

Conclusion:

211 Check has looked into image purportedly of the Freedom Bridge in Juba and finds it to be FALSE

#FactsMatter, Don’t be a victim of fake news; instead, let’s fight misinformation on both mainstream and alternative media. To avoid spreading false information, don’t share content you’re not sure about or don’t know where it came from.

To learn more about our fact-checking process, go to https://211check.org/how-to-fact-check/ or send us a WhatsApp message at +211 917 298 255 to present a claim, and our team will immediately fact-check it and respond.

260370917_426395955658036_3316745237288104446_n211 Check

Fact-Check: Images of wounded man not taken from South Sudan

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By Charles Lotara

Disturbing images of a man under intensive care unit are being peddled by social media platforms with claims that the man was found unconscious in part of South Sudan.

False Information Being Peddled on Facebook

On Tuesday evening, Insight Juba, a Facebook page with over 16k followers boldly claimed that the images are those of Deng Wol Deng, a university graduate from Western Bhar-el-Ghazal State who got ambushed along Juba – Nimule Highway.

In another staggering claim, the page says the victim in the images was on his way to Eastern Equatoria to assist a group of physically challenged children when his car was attacked along the road leaving two people dead with one survivor.

With scant details of the incident and with no citation of official sources, the page called on the general public to avoid travelling along the Juba – Nimule Highway and urged security forces to provide protection.

Insight Juba, which was created in 2020, cited 64 Tribes, another Facebook page as the primary source of their story.

However, a quick search through the Facebook page of 64 Tribes in relation to the story returned no result.

There have been no official reports of armed violence along the Juba – Nimule Highway in the last two months.

A geo-location search using Pic2Map returned no EXIF data for obvious reasons. Pic2Map requires unaltered photo files in order to process the data, which is most likely not the case with this image. And, social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter strip out EXIF data from uploaded photos, which is true of the images circulating.

But a Google reverse search showed that the incident the man in the picture was caught up in actually happened in Omdurman during the #ParadeNovember2021 when Sudanese took to the streets to register their displeasure with the military plot to bequeath civilian rule.

The situation led to civil unrest with an unconfirmed number of people getting either injured or killed. The images were first posted on 22/11/2021 within 6:47PM by two Twitter accounts all claiming that the man whose identity was not established at the time, was in a critical condition and admitted at Al-Waad Hospital in Omdurman, one of the most populated cities in Sudan.

But both Twitter accounts carry pseudonyms and their bios only imply that they are pro-revolution. However, this does not disqualify the possibility of the images being taken in Sudan as they first appeared on Sudanese-run Twitter platforms.

#FactsMatter, Don’t be a victim of fake news; instead, let’s fight misinformation on both mainstream and alternative media. To avoid spreading false information, don’t share content you’re not sure about or don’t know where it came from.

To learn more about our fact-checking process, go to https://211check.org/how-to-fact-check/ or send us a WhatsApp message at +211 917 298 255 to present a claim, and our team will immediately fact-check it and respond.

IMG-20211120-WA0015211 Check

Hoax: The Bank of South Sudan is NOT giving 100,000 pounds to lucky winners for its 10th anniversary

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Though it is true that the Bank of South Sudan is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the 100,000 pounds cash prize to lucky winners is a HOAX, and NOT LEGITIMATE. If you receive such links, kindly ignore them and let others know about such online fraud. 

By 211 Check Editorial Team

A promotional website link being shared on WhatsApp claiming that people stand chances of getting 100,000 pounds through a questionnaire as the Bank of South Sudan celebrates its 10th anniversary is a HOAX.

The hoax through an unrelated site leads to a page with the following multiple choice questions:

1. Do you know about the Bank of South Sudan?

2. How old are you?

3. How do you think of Bank of South Sudan?

4. Are you male or female?

After answering the questions, you see a congratulatory message asking you to select a correct box with your prize inside.

After selecting a box, it then tells you have won 100,000 pounds and that you should tell 5 groups or 20 friends on WhatsApp about the promotion. They claim the gift will be delivered within 5-7 days.

Fake Pages

However, the promotion is not legitimate, it is a hoax. For some online users wondering what makes the promotion a hoax, below are tips of facts about this online fraud.

#Fact1: The link is highly suspicious.

If you closely look at the link, it goes to a site which is not an original or official Bank of South Sudan website link or domain. You should note that the official website for the Central Bank of South Sudan is https://www.boss.gov.ss/

The fake promotion links moves from one website to another, which 211 Check found were unrelated Chinese-registered (.cn) domains.

In addition, the above link is not Encrypted, which would start with https://. Note that legitimate websites will use SSL-Encrypted links (with HTTPS, not HTTP). When you see such links, DO NOT CLICK on them.

#Fact2: Bank of South Sudan’s 10th Anniversary was in July 2021

Bank of South Sudan was established in July 2011 and it has not been celebrating its anniversary since then.

#Fact3: The Bank of South Sudan doesn’t offer prizes or awards. The Bank of South Sudan released a statement on Wednesday, 18/08/2021 following a similar hoax in August this year that it was warning the public “about fraudulent activities being perpetrated in its name on social media through a fraud scheme”

“This scam uses Bank of South Sudan’s brand names and logo in order to make the prize look legitimate. They claim that the BoSS offers prizes worth 300 thousand United States Dollars. This is not true, the BoSS does not offer prizes, awards, or funds,” reads a statement shared by the Bank of South Sudan through its Facebook Page.

#Fact4: The promotion page has so many troubling clues

If you click on the link, you will be led to a page, claiming you will get a chance to win 100,000 pounds – a page that is full of grammatical mistakes, something an actual Bank of South Sudan website would not have.

When you click on the comments of people who claimed to have won the prizes, the links don’t take you to any reliable web. Our analysis shows that the messages are all ‘FAKE’ placed there to lure you.

In addition, if you check the code of the comments, you can see that all comments and pictures were manually inserted on the web.

#Fact5: You will always win the 100,000 pounds prize

You can try the contest any number of times, and you will ALWAYS win the 100,000 pounds.

Why? Because the next step involves you sharing this with 5 groups or 20 friends on WhatsApp. So, no matter how many times you participate, you will ALWAYS win the free 100,000 SSP. Do you think that’s the case with a real contest? Of course NO!

#Fact6: Website information through Whois Search

The WHOIS information of the imposter website reveals it was registered on November 19, 2021, in the United States while the legitimate Bank of South Website is https://www.boss.gov.ss/ 

Conclusion:

Though it is true that the Bank of South Sudan is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the 100,000 pounds cash prize to lucky winners is a HOAX, and NOT LEGITIMATE. If you receive such links, kindly ignore them and let others know about such online fraud. 

Do not provide your account details or personal identification information to a scammer. Don’t share or click suspicious links on the internet.

#FactsMatter, Don’t be a victim of fake news; instead, let’s fight misinformation on both mainstream and alternative media. To avoid spreading false information, don’t share content you’re not sure about or don’t know where it came from.

To learn more about our fact-checking process, go to https://211check.org/how-to-fact-check/ or send us a WhatsApp message at +211 917 298 255 to present a claim, and our team will immediately fact-check it and respond.

259047083_422888492675449_2375626077867734853_n211 Check

Fact-Check: Does this image show people pushing a plane at Yei airstrip? No.

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A Facebook image purporting to show people pushing a plane at Yei airstrip is FALSE.

The post shared on Wednesday, 17th November was partly captioned, “This pic was taken early today from Yei International Airport…”The author, in his post, was wondering why the airstrip’s runway was in a poor shape.

However, Google reverse image search results show that the picture was used at least two years before now.

The image was shared on 7th and 13th October 2019 on Facebook and Twitter respectively describing an event that happened in Somalia.

An official at Yei airstrip also dismissed the claim as ‘NOT TRUE’. He says the incident depicted in the picture didn’t happen there.

Conclusion:

211 Check has looked into an image claiming to show a plane being pushed at Yei airstrip and finds it to be FALSE.

INVESTIGATION211 Check

Online Fraud: A case study of SMK Electronics Corporation and Prime Express Logistics

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How highly sophisticated fraudsters and cyber crime network scam South Sudanese in fake business transactions

By Oriba Douglas 

Introduction:

“I have been cheated $450 by online shopping scammers,” claims Mokili Elias Justin, a Juba South Sudanese based in a report to 211 Check

He then goes ahead to list a company calling itself SMK Electronics Corporation, who through their eye-catching advertisements on Facebook, lured him into a transaction that saw the Company SMK Electronics Corporation convince him, Mokili Elias Justin, to buy from them. He was then referred to WhatsApp, where a United States phone number +15108546513, helped seal the deal through a booking and payment. 

Facebook Page of the SMK Electronics Corporation

Payment was done as per wishes of “the WhatsApp contact +15108546513” and was to be deposited through local money transfers based in Juba whom the WhatsApp contact knew so very well. 

The recipients of the payments were Kenyan numbers +254769925315 and +254741963091. 

SMK Electronics then assured him that a courier calling itself Prime Express Logistics (https://www.primeexpresslogistics.com) had been given his personal details i.e., Full Name and Location taken and will do the delivery. He was then given a tracking number: 1633159726 so as to track the shipment of his package. He was then referred to visit https://www.primeexpresslogistics.com/track.php to track his package from there. 

On him visiting the site and inputting the given tracking number, a static HTML page displays in table format, the expected delivery date which was 04/10/2021 together with both the shipper’s and receiver’s information parallel to one another. 

He, Moikili Elias Justin, then emailed Prime Express Logistics to inquire about his package as it was experiencing a delay. 

They replied to him and stated that he had to pay customs fees to the tune of $152 and it had to be paid through Mpesa to the phone number +254769925315 registered under Ngatia Kagema in Nairobi, Kenya.

Alarmingly after going through all this, the package never arrived and he was totally ignored by all parties to this transaction. (Both the online seller and the courier)

Investigation:

211 Check started this investigation by collaborating on all of Mokili Elias Justin’s claims. It was found that what his claims were, was indeed fact! He had been parted from his hard-earned cash without receiving the product he bought online.

211 Check went through screenshots of conversations between Mokili Elias Justin and SMK Electronics Corporation (the online business), then that of his conversations with the WhatsApp number +15108546513 (Agent of the online business) and finally his conversations with Prime Express Logistics (The courier to do the delivery) through screenshots of emails between them.

From these conversations, 211 Check highlighted the following:

  • Company doing the sales is calling itself SMK Electronics Corporation
  • WhatsApp number +15108546513 is acting as company representative for SMK Electronics Corporation
  • Prime Express Logistics, was the courier that Mokili’s package would be delivered through

211 Check after careful thorough investigation on Company profiles and registration details can confidently state the following on the highlighted points

  1. SMK Electronics Corporation, USA (www.smkusa.com) has no official Facebook page thus the one Mokili Elias Justin came across through Facebook promoted content advertisement is an imposter taking advantage of this absence. The Facebook page calling itself SMK Electronics Corporation is a fraudulent imposter seeking to confuse intending buyers that it is indeed the original SMK Electronics Corporation, USA (which is a subsidiary of a manufacturing company). Its parent company is SMK Corporation which is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. (www.smk.co.jp) 
  2. The WhatsApp number +15108546513 is registered under the names Zizzey Biz Lines and is not traceable to a person or registered business. 211 Check can firmly state that this number is in no way a legitimate number for a representative of the SMK Electronics Corporation, USA. Official contacts can be found on this site (www.smkusa.com) 
  3. There is a registered company called Prime Express Logistics (https://www.primexpresslogistics.com) The one fronted to Mokili is also calling itself Prime Express Logistics (https://www.primeexpresslogistics.com) is a known fraudulent website seeking to scam customers.

Red Flags:

An in-depth look at both the online business and courier under scrutiny was able to produce facts that can be grouped under “Red flags” (suspicious, irregularities, misleading, not true)

Red Flag 1: The Courier – Prime Express Logistics

  • The site (https://www.primeexpresslogistics.com)  purported to be for Prime Express delivery has no any other functionality apart from what is seen on the home page plus the page where you are made to believe that you will be able to track your package shipments. The site has no working buttons linking to services, contact us and about us. Their sign-up page links to (https://www.courier.citysprint.uk) – a site that is totally unrelated to this one.
  • The email provided on the site [email protected] is not working.
  • The images used on the site are also present on another site called Prime Express Logistics (https://www.primexpresslogistics.com)
  • No mention of any office locations or physical local or headquarters anywhere on the site.
  • No mention of how said company is to deliver your goods to you.
  • No e-commerce capabilities on the site, no clear financial documentation on conducting business with them.
  • The location given “300 Lighting Way Secaucus, NJ 07094, USA.” points to Safilo, USA (A manufacturing company). Next to the location information is a telephone field that is deliberately left empty. (Like really, why won’t a company want to share their office telephone line?!?)

Red Flag 2 :  The Facebook Page – SMK Electronics Corporation

  • The Facebook Page created in the name of SMK Electronics Corporation has only 3 likes. Thankfully, their promoted content too has minimal interactions. Averaging 1 comment per post. It was opened in August 2020.
  • It is a fraudulent disguise as SMK Corporation (www.smk.co.jp) even using the official SMK Corporation logo.
  • Be informed that the SMK corporation started in Japan as a manufacturing Company in 1925.

Red Flag 3: The WhatsApp dealings

  • The transaction on what was to be bought was done and concluded on WhatsApp. Payment directives were also given through WhatsApp to local Mpesa registered numbers in Kenya.

Red Flag 4: Unreceipted Payments

  • 211 Check saw no receipts for the payments to Kenyan numbers +254769925315 and +254741963091 with exception to Mpesa Agent logs. The online seller did not officially acknowledge any of the payments.

Tools used in the analysis:

Crowd tangle analysis on the Facebook page SMK Electronics Corporation revealed its low content reach with its main market target as South Sudan and also ruled out any current ongoing advertising by the page. It also disclosed that the page only has 3 followers.

Analysing the website www.primeexpresslogistics.com using https://whois.domaintools.com‘s algorithm showed that the website was registered and hosted in February 2021 on a 1 year license. All other information would help identify the site owners has not been made public by the algorithm on command from www.namecheaphosting.com 

A look at the source code to the website indicates a hastily assembled site with only two functioning pages i.e., www.primeexpresslogistics.com and www.primeexpresslogistics.com/track.php. All other buttons on site do not function and content is outdated, reading 2019 yet site was hosted in Feb, 2021.Further Look into the source code using Chrome browser Developer tools indicates links to other unrelated sites meaning this web-paged was hastily copied and pasted from some other site on the internet then refurbished to give it a new external look and feel.

The page www.primeexpresslogistics.com ranked the lowest score on the site www.scam-detector.com with a score of 1.5 out of 100.Being branded a highly suspicious and dubious account according to the site Scam Detector’s algorithm.

Conclusion:

Both the online business using the stolen brand name of SMK Electronics corporation and the courier using the not so popular and un-trustworthy name of Prime Express logistics are fraudulent. 

The interconnection between the two is no doubt a cleverly concealed team effort to dupe prospective customers that they are dealing with a genuine American representative from the online business and a Kenyan courier. But still fail and all payments are made to Kenyan contacts thus indicating the culprits are closer to home than we think.

Sadly, proof of their identity remains a mystery. One still is for sure though; they are fraudulent. A classic example of the dreaded online courier fraud!

Online Business and Transaction Tips:

An online- business is one that sells its goods/merchandise to customers over the internet.

A courier service involves the delivery of goods/items from one company/individual to another. These are either brought to them by a seller or they go pick it directly from a seller. There are many companies both local and international couriers that offer these services such as locally within South Sudan is Juba Errands and Primefuels South Sudan, and International is DHL among others.

Obligations of e-commerce company/online business:

Avail exact goods as advertised through their online business to the clients as per purchase agreement through relevant delivery means i.e. couriers.

Obligations couriers:

Pick goods from online businesses or receive goods from online businesses and deliver to the buyer.

Failure to meet both obligations:

If both the online business and courier fail to live up to their obligations, the customer may in some cases get a refund or sadly accept the fact that he/she may be a victim of;

Advanced fee fraud scam: Where advanced payments are made for goods or services that do not materialize.

None delivery scam: Where an online business accepts payment for a good or service but fails to have it delivered to the customer.

A customer going through such an experience may warrant an in-depth search for answers. And this investigative piece seeks to help one such buyer who is seeking for answers.

DID MABIOR GARANG FORM NCSS DAYS AFTER MEETING KIIR211 Check

Fact-Check: Did Mabior Garang establish his organization after meeting President Kiir?

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National Conversation South Sudan, Mabior’s organisation, was registered by the South Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Commission in March 2021. This was months ago before his recent meeting with President Salva Kiir

By 211 Check Editorial Team

In a tweet on Wednesday, 3rd November, Eye Radio reported that Mabior John Garang de Mabior has established an organization days after meeting President Salva Kiir in Juba.

According to the report, Mabior is now the chairman of South Sudan National Conversation – a newly registered non-governmental organization based in Juba.

But, was the organisation truly established after Mabior’s meeting with President Kiir? Well, we checked it:

Findings:

A look at the organization’s digital platforms on Web, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter shows that it has been in existence long before now, at least from September 2020.

Further investigation also reveals that the National Conversation South Sudan was registered by the Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC) on 24th March 2021 as a national organisation as seen in its registration certificate below:

Certificate of Registration for the National Conversation South Sudan

Conclusion:

The report that Mabior John Garang de Mabior established his organization days after meeting President Salva Kiir in Juba is FALSE and MISLEADING. Mabior’s organisation, the National Conversation South Sudan was legally registered in March 2021 months before this meeting.

#FactsMatter, Don’t fall victim to fake news; let’s fight the spread of misinformation on both mainstream and alternative media. To avoid spreading false information, don’t rush into sharing content that you aren’t sure of or you don’t know its origin.To know more about our fact-checking process, visit:  https://211check.org/how-to-fact-check/    or send us a WhatsApp Message at +211 917 298 255 to present a claim, our team will immediately fact-check it and send you a feedback.