ASSHOLES creating fake Twitter accounts and posting fake "Baltimore looting" photos!
Baltimore looting tweets show importance of quick and easy image checks
Eoghan mac Suibhne/@buileshuibhne
Anyone who has ever asked me for tips on content verification and debunking of fakes knows one of the first things I always mention is reverse image search. Its one of the simplest and most powerful tools at your disposal. This week provided another good example of how overlooked it is.
Unrest in Baltimore, like any other dramatic event these days, created a surge of activity on social media. In the age of the selfie and ubiquitous cameras, many people have become compulsive chroniclers of all their activities sometimes unwisely so.
Reactions ranged from shock and disgust to disbelief and amusement when a series of images started to circulate showing looters proudly displaying their ill-gotten gains. Not all, however, was as it seemed.
Few things say America like KFC, and it was no surprise to see that the Colonel had fallen victim to the violence:
https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/800/1*RbZ_rxj_lEv9kh-ko1L_Tw.png
I often get asked about the fundamentals of verification, and one of the first things I alway mention is the ability and indeed the reflex to always perform a reverse image search. I also mention, only half-jokingly, that this should possibly even be added to the school curriculum. Its not as if it would take up much of the school year; it can be taught in approximately 30 seconds.
In the case of the trashed KFC above, a quick check via Google reverse image search or Tineye showed that the photo was taken in Karachi, Pakistan, in 2012.
Several other tweets portraying similar scenes were just as easily debunked:
https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/800/1*455nZd0m0diE4PI182XxrQ.png
The photo showing the pile of cosmetics has been online for at least three years.
-much more-
https://medium.com/@Storyful/baltimore-looting-tweets-show-importance-of-quick-and-easy-image-checks-a713bbcc275e
What the fuck is wrong with people?????