Tag Archive for: #SocialMedia

Misleading Article Being Shared Online

Fact-Check: An article allegedly written by Louis Anei is FALSE

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211 Check Editorial Desk

An article titled “Kiir Mayar has openly shown us how much he hates his own voters in Greater Tonj by imposing his political tool Aleu Ayieny Aleu” allegedly written by Ustaz Louis Anei Madut is FALSE

The article that goes on to list about 10 points has since been dismissed by Ustaz Louis Anei Madut himself.

FALSE article being circulated in WhatsApp groups

In a Facebook post, Ustaz Louis Anei Madut said, “The purported article said to have been written by me is false! This is a concoction from my political enemies who want to put me deep into the grave but God is there alive.”

“I wish it was to be investigated as to who is the source, meanwhile I’m on my way to the village for social issues. I have nothing to do with those political concoctions.”

#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.

Bentiu tv Misleading Image

Fact-Check: Do these pictures show livestock killed by floods in Bentiu? No

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These pictures showing livestock allegedly killed by floods in Bentiu, Unity State are misleading

By 211 Check Editorial Team

Pictures shared by Bentiu tv, a Facebook page with the caption, “This is how flood kills livestock in Bentiu” are FALSE

Reverse image search of the pictures leads to a story published by the Star Kenya two days ago in which raging water as a result of heavy rains at the slopes of Mt Kilimanjaro in neighbouring Tanzania killed livestock in Kenya’s Taita Taveta county.

Conclusion:

The images do not show livestock killed by floods in Bentiu, Unity State. They instead show livestock killed in Taita Taveta county, Kenya.

#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.

JOSEPHINE JOSEPH LAGU SCAM (1)211 Check

Scam Alert: The Business Opportunity on the Facebook Page “Josephine Joseph Lagu Foundation” is a Hoax

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When contacted by 211 Check Josephine Joseph Lagu who is the current minister for Agriculture and Food Security, said the business opportunity is fake and that she has not set up any foundation

By 211 Check Editorial Team

There is an ongoing fake business opportunity being run in a Facebook ad on a page named “Josephine Joseph Lagu Foundation.”

The post claims that following a successful Trade deal between the so called Josephine Joseph Lagu Foundation and the Commonwealth, they had signed a Trade and Investment Agreement to sponsor and invest in small and medium enterprises across South Sudan

Here is the full text:

“Business Sponsorship Opportunity!

Following a successful Trade deal between our Foundation and the Commonwealth, We have signed a Trade and Investment Agreement to sponsor and invest in small and medium enterprises across the country. This investment is aimed at supporting farmers and businessmen to cope with the changing global trends. If you want our foundation to invest in your business/farm kindly read more details and apply via link: https://tinyurl.com/5zbpt95p”

Fake Business Opportunity Post

The post then directs people to click on a link that takes them to the following google form requesting personal information among others:

Google Form of the Fake Business Opportunity

Findings:

211 Check made an investigation and found the following:

The Facebook Page was created yesterday, Friday, 12th November 2021 and immediately ran a paid Facebook ad. Opportunities on new platforms on any digital space are highly suspicious.

We contacted Josephine Joseph Lagu who is the current minister for Agriculture and Food Security, but she denied owning a foundation or being aware of one in her name.

“The business opportunity being run in my name is fake. I have not set up any foundation, neither am I aware of any in my name,” Josephine Lagu told 211 Check Saturday morning.

Conclusion:

The business opportunity being run on the Facebook Page Josephine Joseph Lagu Foundation is a SCAM. There is no legal Foundation named Josephine Joseph Lagu in South Sudan. 

#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.

October 2021 South Sudan Social Media Health Report211 Check

South Sudan Social Media Health Report – October 2021

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Most online discussions among South Sudanese continue to happen mainly on Facebook and WhatsApp groups. It is also clear that digital natives are more interested in social issues around music, sports and comedy rather than politics and/or conspiracies.

A 211 Check, Defy Hate Now South Sudan Report

Introduction:

This social media health report is based on data collected during working days from October 1st to October 31st, 2021. The major goal of the report is to examine the main and most talked about conversations on various social media platforms. 

The report as well studies the overall dynamics of hate speech, dis/misinformation and incitement to violence contents shared by South Sudanese online and foreign nationals related to South Sudanese regardless of being situated within the country or abroad – the study also looks at South Sudan’s digital and social media landscape and growth. 

This month’s monitoring comprises an overall assessment of top Facebook pages, groups, Instagram Accounts and Twitter Handles using CrowdTangle, Vicinitas and other social media monitoring techniques. Report’s key topics are identified based on the level of participation and the amount of attention it receives on social media.

In the October 2021 reporting period, 122 of 196 pages published posts in the current timeframe for a total of 1,725 posts and an average of 2.02 posts/day. 

Compared to the previous time frame, interactions were -24.45%. 

Key issues of the month – Facebook:

  1. Foreign Ministry sets exams for candidates wishing to be enrolled into foreign service.

The Ministry of foreign affairs and international cooperation conducted entry examinations for candidates enrolling into foreign service. The move is said to have come after the government said some employees are obtaining certificates through fraudulent means.

The post shared by Nyamilepedia on Facebook got over 610 reactions, 95 comments and 28 shares. Many commentators raised doubts with some saying there is possibility that the examinations “were leaked” while others wondered why in the first place they didn’t see advertisements for the enrollment.

  1. Emmanuel Jal visits Juba

Emmanuel Jal, a South Sudanese recording artist based in Canada arrived in Juba in the last week of October to a warm welcome by family members. In a video he shared on his Facebook page, there were 65,000 views, over 2,700 reactions, 263 comments and 89 shares. The comments were mainly thanking him for coming home and others asked for a charity concern so he can perform his songs.

  1. What is stopping you from marrying a dinka?

A question by Juba TV “What is stopping you from marrying a dinka?” generated a huge debate in the comments section – some of which constitutes hate speech against certain tribes. The post had 665 reactions, 309 comments and 10 shares.

  1. Motivational Post from Max Jay

Max Jay, a South Sudanese artist, posted “God always got you” giving the example of a Rwandan who was once called a monkey. His Facebook post got over 23,000 reactions, 1,300 comments and 449 shares.

Many commentators expressed sympathy and how merciful God is.

  1. A reflection of the Mundari Culture

Visit South Sudan shared a photo captioned “Mundari culture, friendly people” in which a white lady posed for a picture with some Mundari ladies. The post attracted 6,000 reactions, 192 comments and 77 shares. Many comments were appreciative about how the Mundari people continue to uphold their culture.

  1. Ensuring access to COVID-19 vaccines for all in South Sudan

UNICEF reflects its efforts to encourage women to get vaccinated. UNICEF says it was working with partners to dispel rumors and to create a demand for vaccines.

The Facebook post attracted 8,300 reactions, 123 comments and 37 shares. 

There were some cases of vaccine misinformation in the comments section.

  1. Silver X meets Vice President Wani Igga at a youth peace camp

South Sudan Singer Silver X meets Vice President Wani Igga at a youth peace camp in Lobonok. 

  1. South Sudan Football Association expresses hopes of winning

South Sudan Football Association Coach Simon James Yor tells fans that they are hopeful of securing a win against Gambia following a bad start in their first two matches of the competition.

Key issues of the month – Instagram:

  1. MTN CEO meets President Salva Kiir

On Instagram, one of the leading posts of the month was President Kiir’s meeting with MTN Group Chairman, Mcebisi Jonas and CEO Ralph Mupita in which they promised to invest $120m in capital ventures in the next three years.

  1. Acacia village welcomes hospitality trainees

A picture shared by the Acacia village welcoming their three hospitality trainees in the hotel sector.

  1. South Sudanese Model, Monica Ayen wins Eric Omondi’s wife material show

Monica Ayen, a South Sudanese Model wins Kenyan Comedian Eric Omondi’s wife material season 3. The post by Hot in Juba has over 350 interactions and a few comments.

  1. Emmanuel Jal comes to Juba

Emmanuel Jal, a South Sudanese recording artist based in Canada arrived in Juba in the last week of October to a warm welcome by family members. In a video he shared on his Instagram had 2,151 views and about 45 comments.

Key issues of the month – Twitter:

On Twitter, where South Sudan has a small number of users, about 718 handles in the last 10 days of October made 2,000 posts with an engagement of 7,000 and influence of 4.3 million.

Screen capture of the #SSOT word cloud. The most used words are in bold.

Our analysis found out that most of the posts by South Sudanese on Twitter are retweets constituting about 68.6%. About 29.6% are original tweets while 1.82% are replies.

The type of rich media used are photos constituting upto 95.8%

Screen Capture showing the types of post and rich media respectively

#SSOT, remains the most popular hashtag among South Sudanese on Twitter followed by #SouthSudan

Screen Capture of Leading Hashtags and User mentions

Analysis

Most online discussions among South Sudanese continue to happen mainly on Facebook and WhatsApp groups. It is also clear that digital natives are more interested in social issues around music, sports and comedy rather than politics and/or conspiracies.

Instagram and Twitter: The number of South Sudanese on Instagram and Twitter continues to be really low. Most of the interesting and engaging discussions around South Sudan topics happen on Facebook and in WhatsApp groups. On Twitter South Sudan content is unified by the hashtags #SSOT and #SouthSudan. The word cloud above clearly gives an indication of the dominating discussions on Twitter.

Conclusion:

Using advanced social media monitoring methods, conversation, and content analysis, this report analyzed online hate speech, misinformation and fake news in South Sudan. 

According to the month-long assessment report, contemporary social media behavior is becoming a severe worry. Hate speech can be found not just in postings, but also in comment sections.

Furthermore, the study discovered that what individuals are talking about and sharing on social media overlaps. People are exposed to a variety of realities, and as a result, they express varying viewpoints and instead of being honest and having a reasonable dialogue, social media users prefer to utilize slurs and incendiary phrases. 

As a result, the report identified that overall social media involvement is widely healthy, with minimal nasty content and calls for violence being produced and disseminated. 

The 211 Check team also observed that mainstream media was not involved in the spread of conspiracies but employed  conflict-sensitive reporting practices. However, this is the moment for all stakeholders to address key issues before they become a source of unanticipated events.  

End…. 

Social Media Impersonation Poster211 Check

EXPLAINER: All You Need to Know About “Social Media Impersonation”

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As technology continues to become a part of our day-to-day life, social media impersonation attempts by malicious actors are also far from coming to a halt but rather becoming more sophisticated in nature.

By Vukeni Innocent Joseph 

When we think about impersonation, the first thing that comes to mind is an act of deception. Impersonation schemes have become more common and deadly in South Sudan in recent months.

Impersonation scams are acts of manipulation carried out by cyber criminals or threat actors in order to achieve their goals, which may include cyber bullying, harassment, financial gain, or a need for personal or confidential information from the target, by duping them into believing the scammer is genuine or someone they know.

Due to a large online presence, which is further a result of the embracement of technology, the most common type of impersonation occurs on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Twitter, and even through emails. As a result, impersonators have more freedom to carry out their actions.

Threat actors impersonate a trustworthy entity or individual on social media to entice their victims. This is accomplished by a technique known as social engineering, in which the fraudster poses as someone else in order to deceive the victim.

Impersonators come across as intelligent actors in their actions simply because they thoroughly investigate their targets on social media to gain vital information about them, such as hobbies, mutual friends, and favorite hangouts. Surprisingly, all of this information is readily available through the posts we make on our social media accounts in the form of images, status updates, and unfettered biographic information, which scammers exploit for nefarious purposes.

An impersonator searching for your Facebook profile and reading through it for information that would be of interest to them, which they can use to carry out impersonation, is a common example. The impostor could carry out their fraud in two ways utilizing the information they collect from your page: setting up as a new Facebook user with the victim’s identity and uploads (profile and cover photographs), and then using this phony page to entice your friends, coworkers, or family members. Alternatively, the impostor could create an account in your name and deceive you by imitating a friend, coworker, or family member.

As technology continues to become a part of our day-to-day life, social media impersonation attempts by malicious actors are also far from coming to a halt but rather becoming more sophisticated in nature. 

However, we can mitigate this cyber crime or malicious act by following and adhering to some basic best practices while on the internet, and these include;

● Being cautious of the information we post on social media or limiting the information we avail on our accounts for example, our phone numbers, date of birth and address where we reside, as they may contain too many details which a scammer could use to their advantage.

● Do not use the same login credentials on two or more social media accounts. This would mean that if your login credentials get to be known, a cyber criminal could take your social media accounts hence denying you access. It is also good practise to use password managers to manage your login credentials for multiple accounts online.

● Do not click random suspicious links sent on social media and be keen to know the source of the link, as this could also be an entry point for malware such as spyware or viruses on your phones or computers

● Verify the genuineness of social media accounts that may want to engage with you, making sure that the source of any kind of communication or advert is known to you.

● Endeavor to report cases of impersonation to SafetyComm South Sudan which will aid in verification of false accounts and also have those accounts taken down from the internet.