PATTAYA, Thailand – As if the truth wasn’t bad enough, many millions of words of fake news are peaking on social media sites and mass emailings. The most dangerous to individuals are SMS claims to be offering up-to-date and honest news about the earthquake, but in reality those clicking will find their personal and banking data at high risk.
Early estimates of the casualties in Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket – 10,000 plus according to New York click-bait press releases led to countless phone calls and messages to contacts in Thailand to ascertain the safety of family members. There have been nonsense tales, mostly in the Thai language, that Pattaya seafront was awash with corpses after a follow-up tsunami. Conspiracy theorists speculated that the collapse of the multi-storey audit offices in Bangkok was actually a bomb plot by people who were trying to disrupt official tax inquiries.
There have also been unnumerable messages from condominium owners all over Thailand, but currently abroad, asking friends or next of kin to send a message to say the building has not been damaged. One email, shown to Pattaya Mail, said, “If my unit (in Jomtien) has collapsed, could you please check if you can find the paperwork for my one-year visa which is due in April.”
Fans of the 16th century seer Nostradamus have been quick to point out predictions in his short poems or four-line quadraines. Vague terms like “the earth will shatter” and “fire from the earth’s belly” have been stretched ridiculously to refer to the events in Myanmar last Friday. Incidentally, Nostradamus fans have also predicted an international currency collapse in 2025 caused by cryptocurrency (based on his expression “coin leather”) and open rifts in Britain’s royal family (based on “cruel war”).
There are genuine reports of internet overload and signal deterioration during this very distressing time. But it’s best to use only official sources for information for accurate updates of the tragedy, especially via The National News Bureau of Thailand. Or be aware there are multiple sources out there with the single aim of exploiting you one way or another.
