A post that claimed Mark Zuckerberg, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Facebook, said his company’s flagship products would be shut down for seven days. They appeared online and went viral.
In the viral post, Zuckerberg reportedly announced that the seven-day outage would affect Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger and is expected to start at 1 p.m. on October 6.
The post surfaced online shortly after Facebook-owned businesses experienced a six hour outage Monday, leaving millions of worried users around the world.
“Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger shut down again for 168 hours (7 days) I apologize for the disruption. I know how much you rely on our services to stay in touch with the people who are dear to you. we will begin our upgrade on Wednesday October 6, 2021 – 1:00 pm, ”the post read.
The post, which is said to have come from Zuckerberg’s verified Facebook page, continued to circulate on social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, with many users sharing it on their handles.
Nigerian actress Moyo Lawal also shared the post via her Pages instagram where she has 1.8 million followers.
“See what I saw ooo,” the actress wrote alongside the viral post. His article garnered over 100 comments and 1,400 likes.
The viral post was also shared on several blogs as can be seen here and here.
But did Zuckerberg say that?
TheCable’s checks showed that the viral post was not written by Zuckerberg as claimed.
Further checks revealed that the post had been tampered with as no such thing was found on the Contractor’s official Facebook page where he provided updates on recent development.
Hours after Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram returned after the outage, Zuckerberg apologized for the service disruption in a message.
“Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger are coming back online now. Sorry for the disruption today – I know how much you rely on our services to keep in touch with the people who are dear to you, ”he wrote via his la page Facebook mardi.
In a monitoring station, the CEO of Facebook had described the development as “the worst outage we’ve had in years,” adding that efforts are underway to ensure that does not happen again.
He also dismissed criticism of his business amid the recent blackout, while alleging attempts to paint a “false picture” of the tech company in certain neighborhoods.
“I’m sure many of you have found the recent coverage difficult to read because it just doesn’t reflect the business we know. We care deeply about issues such as safety, well-being and mental health, ”he wrote.
“It’s hard to see coverage that distorts our work and our motivations. At the most basic level, I think most of us just don’t recognize the false corporate image that is painted.
VERDICT:
The viral post that Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp will shut down for seven days is bogus. The post was not written by Zuckerberg as claimed.
This story is published in partnership with Report for the World, a global service program that supports local public service journalism.
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