We have to deal with a lot of fake news about Iceland and Icelanders. Who can forget last summer’s classic hoax that the Icelandic government is paying foreign men to marry Icelandic women? Well, a new fake news story about Iceland has popped up, and makes some pretty shoddy attempts at credibility. Easy to debunk, it might have nonetheless popped up on your social media feed and given the impression it was credible.
This story, from one Direct News Blog, purports to have an interview with famous Icelandic billionaire Björgólfur Thor Björgólfsson, wherein he discloses how people can get rich by exploiting an undisclosed loophole. Why a billionaire would tell anyone else how to get rich already defies belief, but despite the poor English of the Facebook status, the site dishonestly attempts to make this look legit.
As can be seen, this article appears at first glance to have been posted on CNN. However, the URL quickly reveals that is not the case. In fact, the entire story – even the “Facebook comments” listed under it – is a complete fabrication. A quick lookup of the IP address tells you exactly what the reality is.
The fact is, rich people are not going to tell you how to get rich, and Direct News Blog is engaging in not just fabrication but also possibly trademark theft in their use of the CNN logo and design. Caveat lector, people.
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