'Parents Can't Afford Surgery' Sick Baby Hoax
The original site is no longer online; links go to the Internet Archive copy.
The claim
Please Dont Ignore!
His parents can’t afford surgery so facebook and cnn are paying half of the expenses
1 like – $1
1 comment – 10$
1 share – 100$
What the fact-checkers found
According to a post that is circulating rapidly via Facebook, users can help cover the medical costs of a sick baby just by liking, sharing or commenting on a photograph of the child.
The message claims that the child’s parents cannot afford surgery, so CNN and Facebook will pay $1 per like, $10 per comment and $100 per share with the goal of covering half the medical expenses. The message features a photograph of a young child on a bed with a large surgery scar on her chest.
However, the claims in the message are heinous lies. Liking, sharing or commenting on the picture will do nothing whatsoever to help the child. Neither Facebook nor CNN will donate as much as a cent. The message is just one more in a long series of disgusting sick child hoaxes.
The image of the child was apparently stolen from a 2012 blog post that discussed the baby’s surgery. The blog’s author published the photo and other information about the baby that was sent to her by the child’s mother. Neither the blog’s author nor the child’s parents would have ever intended or imagined that the child’s image would later be used in such a disgraceful hoax.
The blog post suggests that the child recovered from her surgery. Circulating her picture violates her and her family’s privacy and will do nothing to help. Sharing the hoax is irresponsible and immoral.
Why may you ask would any person stoop so low as to steal a picture of a sick child and use it in a Facebook hoax? Sadly, these sick individuals do so only with the intent of gathering as many likes, shares and comments as they can. Their goal is to promote their Facebook Page or profile, or in some cases, a third-party website.
Any post that claims that a company will donate money to help a sick child based on how many times an image is shared, liked or commented on is sure to be a hoax.
If one of these hoaxes comes your way, please report it to Facebook. Please do NOT comment on the photo or the wall where the photo has been posted, as this gives the hoax more unwarranted exposure by putting the offending photo on to the news feeds of your Facebook friends.
You can also help by making sure that your Facebook friends are aware of such hoaxes.
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