Unverified fake news and rumors have been spreading rapidly across social media platforms in the wake of a magnitude 7.1 strong earthquake in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan.
The Yomiuri Shimbun reported that conspiracy-driven posts claiming the earthquake was "predicted in advance" or "artificially induced" flooded major social media platforms like X immediately after the disaster.
In particular, a post by an account featuring a map image and claiming, "We announced the prediction and got the location right," surpassed 3.4 million views.
Another post on X marked two locations, including the earthquake-affected area and an area east of Tokyo, stating, "Two abnormal signals have been confirmed." It added, "We cannot proceed with further verification due to a shortage of research funds, personnel, and equipment, so we ask the Japan Meteorological Agency to check."
Experts point out that these posts are baseless fake news exploiting the anxiety of disaster, but they continue to spread indiscriminately online.
Regarding this, Furuta Daisuke, editor-in-chief of the Japan Fact-Check Center, pointed out, "There is a high possibility that fabricated images or videos themed around the explosion of the large shopping mall Aeon Mall or damage to Kumamoto Castle will be posted in the future."
Editor Daisuke urged, "When encountering provocative information, please verify its authenticity through announcements by public institutions or reports from news outlets, and do not share uncertain information."
In Japan, fake news has caused major social confusion during past major disasters. During the Kumamoto earthquake in April 2016, false information was circulated claiming that "a lion escaped from the zoo." During the Noto Peninsula earthquake in January 2024, false rescue requests were left by unauthorized use of real addresses where no rescue subjects existed, causing confusion for authorities.
The Japanese government stated that 13 people have been killed so far due to this earthquake, and over 9,000 people have evacuated.
Reported by Kim Taewon | Video by Ahn Jun-hyeok | Graphics by Lee Jung-joo | Produced by SBS Digital News
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