Chain Messages and False Reports in Messaging Apps

In short: Chain messages are messages that explicitly ask to be forwarded, often with threats, supposed warnings or promises of prizes. In messaging apps they spread especially quickly because they come from friends and family.

In more detail: Many chain messages are harmless, but some spread false information, cause fear or lure people to scam websites. Anyone who pauses for a moment and checks before forwarding breaks the chain.

In detail

• Typical features: Requests such as “Send this to all your contacts”, great urgency, lots of exclamation marks and no traceable source are classic giveaways.
• Fear as a driver: Some messages threaten bad luck or claim your account will be deleted if you do not forward them; this is made up.
• Supposed warnings: Warnings about dangerous people, viruses or official actions often circulate even though they were debunked long ago or never happened.
• Borrowed trust: Because the message comes from someone you know, it seems credible, even though that person may simply have forwarded it without checking.
• Scams and data theft: Competitions, vouchers or links to supposed special offers can lead to fake websites that harvest personal data (phishing-und-betrugsmaschen-erkennen).
• Checking before sharing: A quick search for the key sentence of the message together with words like “fake” or “fact check” often shows quickly whether it is a known false report.
• Pictures and voice messages: Photos and voice recordings are also passed on out of context; for pictures, a reverse image search helps (bilder-rueckwaertssuche-nutzen).
• Setting things straight kindly: If you receive a false report, you can point it out to the sender calmly and without blame, ideally with a reliable source.
• Reporting serious content: Messages containing calls for violence, hate speech or threats should not be forwarded but reported in the app, and you should seek help if needed (desinformation-und-deepfakes-erkennen).