Published 14:48 IST, June 5th 2020
Fact Check: Is there a fake 'video' named 'Amit Shah disowns Modi' that will hack phones?
Fact Check: There have been a viral message shared on Whatsapp that a certain 'Amit Shah disowns Modi' video will hack phones, along with a number to block.
Origin:
Republic received a Whatsapp forward from a reader, asking to check whether the message was true or false. This message claimed that a particular video, when opened, will format the phone and it is going viral on Whatsapp. The message claims that a video called ‘Amit Shah disowns Modi’ is being forwarded and is actually very dangerous. It is a virus and it formats the phone as well. It further claims that it was announced on the radio and that they are credit card or debit card hackers. A number is also given along in the message and people are asked to block this number.
(Source: Whatsapp)
'Amit Shah disowns Modi' video fraudulent?
The number given in the message is 9266600223. On inserting the number on Truecaller app, the name 'Crd Cardit Card' pop up. The number has been termed as spam by 31129 reports. It is an Airtel number and it belongs to Delhi.
(Source: Truecaller)
Upon searching the given number on Google, one comes across many articles that claim that the forwarded message is fake and misleading. A Fact Check done in the year 2017 shows that a similar message was sent as well. But, the message that was getting forwarded in 2017 was under the name ‘Sonia disowns Rahul’. To be clear, there is no such video, only a message.
(Source: Boom Live Site)
A hoax through the years
Indian Whatsapp groups and social media are getting the message under the titles of Amit Shah disowns Modi or Sonia disowns Rahul. A similar sort of message about a video being a virus that will format the phone and how it was announced in the radio was shared in other countries as well. There are two versions of this message as well.
One version of the message states that the video is called ‘Dance of the Pope’. It claims that the same information was also announced on BBC radio. A news article in a leading daily has cleared the fact there has been no such announcement on the radio as well. The very same message is also being shared under the name of ‘Martinelli’.
(Source: Naked Security Site)
The Martinelli hoax was shared in 2017-18 as well. The message claims about an IT expert advising about a video named Martellini being shared that was getting popular. The message had similar claims of hacking the phone and that it is able to spread data as well. The Spanish Police had shared this same message and called it fake and false.
Thus, it can be seen that it is just a hoax that just changes its shape while its core is just the same. There is no reality or any kind of truths in these messages. No Indian government bodies or radio channels have sent out warnings about the same as well. Thus, it is a fake message.
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Updated 14:48 IST, June 5th 2020