A photoshop claiming to be news by EBC
An image circulating on social media claiming to show a screenshot of a news report by the Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) caught our attention last week.
The image shows a picture of Shimels Abdisa, President of the Oromia Regional State, giving a speech. The Amharic caption on the image reads “The law enforcement we started In the Amhara region is successfully continuing.”
However, HaqCheck analyzed the image and confirmed that it was altered. According to the media monitoring result, the news in the image, which has been circulating since May 23, has not been published by EBC. Instead, it has been manipulated and disseminated on social media.
Moreover, HaqCheck noted that the picture of Shimelis Abdisa is not recent and was shared in his statement during Eid al-Fitr last year in 2021.
An image claiming to show a recent rally in Tigray
A Twitter account with more than 1100 followers shared a post on May 24, 2022, captioned, “In Tigray, there has been a civil unrest, and the people of Tigray are saying, ‘May abiy Ahmed lead us’”.
By the time this article was published the post had more than 80 reactions and was retweeted more than 30 times.
HaqCheck found the two images on a previous Facebook post from DW Amharic on Oct 2, 2018, captioned, “university students and their families protested in the streets of Mekelle, Tigray. We will not send our students to unsafe places, our students should not make a meaningless sacrifice, states and the federal government should solve this issue,” were some of the writings printed on the posters held in the protest.
The third image was found on borkena.com in an article on June 27, 2018, titled, “Fresh ethnic-based violence in Asossa left at least eight people dead.”
A tweet claiming to show Eritrean security officials recently revealed Ethio 360 and Ethio Forum agreed to work together
A viral tweet appeared on May 25, 2022, claiming that Eritrean security officials recently revealed that Ethio 360 and Ethio Forum discussed online with senior TPLF leaders and agreed to work together. The tweet implicitly accused the media outlets of echoing ‘TPLF’s agenda’.
It presented a screenshot of a text written in Tigrinya in a bid to support the claim.
However, HaqCheck looked into the case and confirmed the screenshot doesn’t confirm that Eritrean security officials claimed to reveal the three mentioned entities recently discussed and agreed to work together.
HaqCheck checked the screenshot to examine whether it proves the claim. However, the screenshot was taken from a Facebook post made on May 23, 2022. The Facebook post was made by a page named ‘Center for research and Documentation’ which claimed to be a news and media website. The page claimed that it got the information that there was an online discussion in which TPLF senior leaders, Ethio Forum, Ethio 360, and members of Digital Weyane participated from its exclusive sources.
Thus, HaqCheck rated the tweet FALSE because the screenshot doesn’t prove the claim that Eritrean security officials revealed there was a discussion among the mentioned parties.
A scam in the name of the US Embassy in Addis Ababa
A Telegram channel by the name of “US Embassy Addis Ababa” with more than 127,000 subscribers posted a job vacancy claiming to be posted by the embassy. The message reads “The US Embassy has created 20,000 jobs in the United States to support the war-torn Ethiopian economy and to strengthen the centuries-old US-Ethiopian friendship. The benefit of this opportunity will include the coverage of cost of transportation, and housing by the embassy.”
The message later requests to fill in personal information such as name, phone number, Address, and others.
However, The US Embassy in Ethiopia posted a statement on its official Facebook page on May 26 saying that “there are fake posts about employment and visa opportunities in the United States on various social media platforms. All legitimate employment opportunities at the U.S. Embassy are posted on our website…” The statement also adds, “The U.S. government will not request personal information via email, Facebook messenger, Telegram, or other social media platforms. Please do not fall victim to scams.”
Recommendations
We recommend social media users be cautious and cross-check information including the authenticity and source. As photoshops, false screenshots, and other new cunning trends are being observed lately they have to look for additional information and credible accounts.
Scams such as the one mentioned in this summary are being circulated widely. And users should be careful from giving their personal information to unverified sources and should take a moment to check the legitimacy of the source.
HaqCheck urges social media content creators to refrain from fabricating and circulating false information. They should feel responsible and share verified and factual information with their audiences.
Since an open access to information is one of the solutions to tackle disinformation we urge the government and all stakeholders to ensure full and unlimited access to information. The public and media should enjoy full access to information. Besides, the government should give timely and sufficient updates on ongoing and controversial issues.
