How to Tell If an Email is Untrue

Some people believe that anything they see online or in an email is true. Before you hit forward to send the latest scary 'true' story or warning on to your friends take a second to follow these steps to find out if it is fact or fiction!

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• computer
• online access

1. Read the email very carefully. Does anything sound fishy or doesn't add up. Does it sound too good to be true?
   Sometimes people send out scare emails or warnings of true stories that have happened to someone they know. There are also emails going around that tell you about something remarkable happening.
   For the purpose of this article I will use two examples.
2. First we'll look at the McCain story about his POW days and the American flag. I received this email and decided to check it out.
   Go to a trusted website such as snopes.com (link below). In the search bar type a general summary of the email. For this one I will put in McCain flag. The first one that comes up is the McCain story.
   You will pick the one that matches closest to your email and usually they have the exact email listed.
3. Click on the article and read. Make sure it is the same email that you received. It will tell you if it's true or not, list the email and then tell you the origin. This story was true.
4. For another example I'll search for the email story about see-through skirts becoming popular in Japan and soon coming to America. I search Japanese skirts and find the article that matches my email. You can now read that this is false, and the origins of the email.

Tips & Warnings

• Take a few seconds to check out emails like this BEFORE you forward them to all of your friends. There's nothing more embarrassing than sending out an email only to find it false.