Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) provides a very effective way for people to socialize and share information fast. However, some people use Facebook pages for all the wrong reasons. In the recent hoax, a Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) page “Senior Lance Corporal” with less than 15,000 likes sent many into panic when it posted that there was an active shooter at Las Pulgas area of Camp Pendleton. The relevance of the post is that the said area has a major facility that’s home to more than 70,000 military personnel and civilians.
The post read:
“…ACTIVE SHOOTER ON PULGAS! ALL MARINES HAVE BEEN INSTRUCTED TO LOCK THEMSELVES INSIDE OF THEIR ROOMS. REGIMENTAL DUTY OFFICER IS ACTING ACCORDINGLY! IF ANYONE HAS FURTHER INFO, CONTACT SLC IMMEDIATELY…”
The base officials went ahead to issue a press statement saying that the law enforcement personnel responded promptly to contain the alleged shooter.
“We investigated and there was no sign of an active shooter. No hardcore evidence,”
said Eric Moore, a dispatcher with the Camp Pendleton Police Department. Moore went ahead to clarify that they were acting in response to several calls made from concerned people who thought that there was actually an active shooter. He went on to say that they didn’t find any “hard evidence” to prove that there was any such incident in the area.
Many fans of the page didn’t know that the post was just a hoax thus going ahead to share it widely and commenting with a lot of concern. The anonymous admin of the given Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) page also took part in the ensuing conversation by updating fans on the “progress” made by the military personnel at the base.
This is however not the first incident of a hoax by Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) user. There is the hoax about a sick baby prayer that said that one like is equivalent to one prayer and a share is equivalent to 100 prayers. Many people fall victim to such hoaxes with some even going as far as giving out their credit card details.
The active shooter hoax becomes the latest to receive wide attention from several quarters.
This article has been written by Victor Ochieng.
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