An article from a notorious fake news website - World News Daily Report (WNDR) claiming mosquitoes inoculated with viagra escaped from a high-security laboratory in Wuhan, China, is going viral online with netizens believing it to be real.
World News Daily Report is a known fake news website, that passes off disinformation under the guise of satirical content.
This is being shared in the backdrop of Lab leak the theory gaining prominence, which is an unproven theory claiming that the COVID-19 virus is not natural and leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China.
Also Read: COVID-19 Origin: Lab Leak Or Natural? What We Know
The article makes up a bogus story that reads, "The Wuhan Institute of Virology announced the security breach yesterday claiming that the genetically modified mosquitoes were harmless to the population." It also carries a photo of an old man claiming that he is an 87-year-old Wuhan resident who was allegedly bitten by one of the genetically modified mosquitoes.
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Viral on Social media
We found that the article is being widely shared on social media with several social media users falling for it.
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Also Read: Fake News Site Invents Story About COVID-19 Patient Zero Having Sex With Bats
FACT-CHECK
BOOM found that the entire story is a work of fiction and at the end of the article, the disclaimer on World News Daily Report states that the content on the website is satirical in nature.
The site's 'About Us' section does not give away much but scroll to the bottom of the same page and one can see a disclaimer that makes it clear that the website should not be taken at face value.
"World News Daily Report assumes all responsibility for the satirical nature of its articles and for the fictional nature of their content. All characters appearing in the articles in this website – even those based on real people – are entirely fictional and any resemblance between them and any person, living, dead or undead, is purely a miracle," - World News Daily Report.
World News Daily Report is a known disinformation peddler that passes of harmful disinformation under the guise of satirical content. The site also finds mention on a list of fake news websites.
BOOM has previously debunked articles from the website in the past with an article claiming Chinese authorities said patient zero of the Coronavirus had sex with bats that had gone viral in March 2020
Also Read: Fake News Site Invents Story About COVID-19 Patient Zero Having Sex With Bats
Also Read: How India's Twitter Influencers Fell For A Known Fake News Website
Additionally, the photograph of an '87-year-old man', who they claimed to have been bit by one of the inoculated mosquitoes is actually a photo of Yukishi Chuganji. Chuganji was a Japanese businessperson who had passed away in 2003 at age of 114 and was one of the oldest people in the world when he died.
We also found Chuganji's photo on the stock photo website Getty images.
