1. Hoax Quiz: Spot the Fakes!
Put your hoax-spotting abilities to the test by taking our popular image quiz. It's harder than you think to separate the real from the fake. Take the quiz!
2. Two-Striped Telamonia Spider
Recycled email hoax warns of the Two-Striped Telamonia spider (Telamonia dimidiata), purportedly a poisonous specimen from Indonesia that hides under toilet seats and is responsible for the deaths of five people in North Florida. Status: False
3. Carmen Winstead
Chain-letter-style Internet postings tell the story of Carmen Winstead, a 17-year-old girl supposedly pushed down a sewer and killed by a gang of girls from her school. Status: False
4. Don't Drink Bottled Water Left in Car
Viral message warns women not to drink bottled water that has been left in a warm car for any length of time because, supposedly, the heat causes cancer-producing toxins to 'leak' from the plastic into the water. Status: See details
5. KFC Mutant Chickens
Viral messages claim KFC serves cost-effective "genetically manipulated organisms" instead of real chickens at its restaurants. Status: False
6. The Legend of Bloody Mary
Urban legend says if you stand in front of a mirror and chant "Bloody Mary" three times, a terrifying ghost will appear. Status: False
7. Hercules, World's Biggest Dog (Photo)
Emailed image of a gargantuan dog named Hercules, purportedly the Guinness Record holder for World's Biggest Dog. Status: Fake
8. Jamie Lee Curtis Is a Hermaphrodite
Longstanding rumors say actress Jamie Lee Curtis was born with male sex organs and underwent a sex change operation as an infant. Status: Dubious
9. Mr. Rogers Was a Marine Sniper / Navy SEAL
Internet rumors allege that mild-mannered children's TV show host Fred Rogers had a former secret career as a trained assassin. Status: False
10. Humans Can Lick, Too
Home alone, but there's nothing to fear with your trusty dog keeping watch under the bed. Or is there? Status: Urban legend
11. Facebook Will End on May 15, 2013
Viral "news story" claims Facebook will end on May 15, 2013 because founder Mark Zuckerberg finds managing the company "too stressful." Status: False
12. Richard Gere and the Gerbil
About that night Richard Gere supposedly ended up in the emergency room with a furry rodent lodged in a bodily orifice. Status: False
13. Dog Park Alert: Nails in Cheese
Wall photo circulating on Facebook purports to reveal a 'new trend' developing in dog parks: handfuls of cheese and ham studded with nails for the purpose of injuring pets. Status: Outdated
14. The Clown Statue
A babysitter calls the parents who hired her to ask if she can cover up the clown statue in the room where she's watching TV because it disturbs her. The parents tell her to call 911, grab the children, and get out of the house immediately! Status: False
15. Burundanga Drug Warning
Viral alerts warn of criminals using business cards or pieces of paper impregnated with a potent street drug called burundanga (aka scopolamine) to incapacitate victims before attacking them. Status: False
16. Staring at Breasts Increases Heart Health in Men
"Medical study" supposedly published in the New England Journal of Medicine claims staring at women's breasts increases heart health and lengthens lifespan in men. Status: False
17. Bill Cosby: 'I'm 76 (or 83) and I'm Tired
Allegedly written by Bill Cosby — who was neither 76 nor 83 when it first began circulating — this viral rant blames the world's problems on lazy poor people, drug addicts, Muslims, and global warming activists. Status: Misattributed
18. What Does '420' Mean, and Why?
A look at urban legends surrounding the symbolism of the number "420" among pot smokers, and how it originated. Read more
19. Baby Carrots and Chlorine
Viral text claims baby carrots (aka cocktail carrots) sold in supermarkets pose a consumer health risk because they're processed in chlorine. Status: False
20. Joshua Bell Plays in Subway Station
Forwarded email describes what happened when acclaimed classical violinist Joshua Bell appeared incognito on a subway platform in Washington, D.C. one cold winter morning and played his heart out for tips. Status: True
21. Bill Gates' 11 Rules of Life
Circulating via email, the text of a speech allegedly given by Bill Gates in which he sets out 11 rules for life that kids won't learn in school. Status: Misattributed
22. Warning: 'Bottle Bombs' or 'Drano Bombs'
Viral alerts warn recipients to beware of "bottle bombs," homemade explosive devices consisting of water, Drano, and aluminum foil in plastic bottles. Status: True
23. Tiger Adopts Piglets
Emailed snapshots taken at a zoo show a mother tiger apparently nursing a brood of piglets costumed in tiger skins. Status: Partly true
24. The Fatal Hairdo
Proof that vanity kills: Girl with a "beehive" hairdo dies a horrible death after a spider crawls inside and lays eggs, hatching a brood of hungry arachnids. Status: False
25. Giant Coconut Crab
Viral images of gargantuan specimens of Birgus latro - the coconut crab - named for its preferred diet of fallen coconuts and said to be the world's largest land-dwelling arthropod. Status: Authentic
Recently Added / Updated
1. Picture of a 'Grave Cage'
Were iron cages placed over graves during the Victorian era to prevent vampires and zombies from returning from the dead? Status: False
2. Eminem Stabbed 4 Times in NYC!!
Scam postings purport to link users to a video showing rapper Eminem being stabbed by a crazed fan in New York City. Status: False
3. Rare Golden Zebra
Viral image of Zoe, a rare golden zebra with burnt-orange stripes and blue eyes. Status: Color-enhanced
