Bait &Amp; Switch

Are social media posts about an "injured" man with dementia who showed up at someone's house real? No, that's not true: Photographs included in the post show a man who was attacked in 2018 in Los Angeles. Several posts falsely claimed the man in the photographs was found in states including Georgia, New Mexico, Washington and California. These posts are…

Are social media posts about a missing boy named Grayson Costain diagnosed with autism real? No, that's not true: Lead Stories has debunked many similar stories about a missing child in various locations before. These bait-and-switch posts use an emotional tale about a child supposedly lost in various locations across the U.S. to draw an audience, then flip to display…

Were social media posts genuinely warning the public in late 2024 about Robert Thibodeau, who was being called a "serial killer on the run" in communities over 2,500 miles apart? No, that's not true: Tipton County, Tennessee, Sheriff Shannon Beasley responded to one of these posts, shared in that area, stating, "This is a scam and NOT TRUE." Through a…

Did President-elect Donald Trump announce $6,400 "relief checks" that "any American can qualify for"? No, that's not true: A video on Facebook showing Trump announcing the checks is a deepfake. A link in the post did not direct users to an official government website but rather to a health insurance webpage. As of this publication, the government had not announced…

Are social media posts authentically trying to find a police officer named Jonathan Diller, described as missing from towns more than 1,000 miles apart? No, that's not true: The Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Police Department replied to one of these posts shared in their area, saying, "You are sharing SPAM." News reports show Diller, a New York City officer, was killed in…

Are social media posts asking for help identifying a disoriented, lost "old lady" who may have dementia real? No, that's not true: This post is part of an online bait-and-switch scam that deceives social media users into viewing posts that are later edited to show fake advertisements. Lead Stories previously debunked similar scam posts about a lost "old lady" with…

Are social media posts posting authentic information that police officers in various states have "no idea" where an "approximately 2 years old" boy who was found and taken to a police station lives? No, that's not true: Lead Stories has debunked a variation of this particular story about an "approximately two years old" boy before. These bait-and-switch posts use an…

Have authorities in various towns and counties in the U.S. found a lost "little boy," approximately 2 years old, whose place of residence is unknown, as a post on Facebook claimed? No, that's not true: This post, and others like it, are part of a known deception to trick people into sharing content. In this scam, a shared claim will…

Was a little boy, approximately 2 or 3 years old, found unattended in several locations, and is he now being cared for at a police station? No, that's not true: The posts circulating on social media are not based on a real, ongoing incident. The deceptive posts use the same photos and captions, but change the name of the town…

Are social media posts about a 3-year-old girl named Alliyah Evans who supposedly was kidnapped from a Target store in various locations real? No, that's not true: The posts that say that she is missing in several different places -- like Greenville, North Carolina; Georgetown, Kentucky; and Stuttgart, Arkansas -- are part of a bait-and-switch scheme. Typically, users post emotional…