Rising Spread Of False News Sparks Panic And Confusion Among UPSI Students, Raising Community Concerns

on



Interview session with Muhammad Naufal (left) and Naveena (right)


BY NISHA PRAKASH AND DR. AHMAD SAUFFIYAN


TANJONG MALIM, 13 APRIL - The spread of false news on social media has become a growing concern among students, with many warning that misinformation is negatively affecting the public understanding and trust within the community.


Especially with the rise of social media usage in students' lives to receive important information on platforms like Instagram, WhatsApp, and TikTok, unverified information can escalate quickly among young people. Many social media users share the content immediately without verifying if the news is accurate or not, causing the rapid circulation of misleading or false claims.


According to Naveena, a TESL student, she had a recent experience of receiving false information regarding a fire drill at her hostel where an AI generated image of a hostel block was on fire was being shared among students and caused panic. ‘‘I think when false news is spread among students it would cause panic especially for such an incident since it also happened during night, so next day when people have to go to class they would be wondering if it was real or what not. Also, it would make students scared and they would call their parents, making them worried since they are far from home,’’ she said. 


Another student, Muhammad Naufal, a Physics student, shared a similar concern where he stated that spreading false information can lead to misunderstanding and argument with people. One of his experiences receiving false news in university is when he was informed that there’s no class for a particular subject but turns out it was just false information from his peer, causing misunderstanding among the students. ‘‘I don’t share news that I am uncertain about because I’ve learned in Islam we have to tabayyun or do verification on a news before sharing it to others,’’ he explained.


The impact of false news is not limited to individuals but affects a wider community especially among students now it’s common to see false information being generated using AI and spreading it on social media platforms. It can lead to confusion, unnecessary panic, conflicts among the community as there are various versions of the same story.


Policymakers continue to encourage the public, especially university students, to verify any information they receive by cross checking on validated platforms or websites, ensuring it is a credible source before sharing it to prevent the spread of misinformation.