Take the quiz: Coronavirus and misinformation

False. Having a runny nose is a symptom of the common cold, but it isn’t exclusive to the common cold and it doesn't rule out Covid-19.

Handy tip: Be wary of information attributed to anonymous sources, like the "friend's uncle" in this post. When you don’t know who the source really is, it makes it a lot harder to verify if it’s true or false. It should also be a red flag—think twice before sharing it.

There is no evidence this took place.

False. Children ARE NOT immune to Covid-19 and there have been thousands of cases of children being diagnosed with the disease. Children generally present with milder symptoms, but in some cases they can also be seriously affected, or pass the virus onto others who are more susceptible.

Handy tip: It’s always good to get more than one source for your information. If you’re not sure if a story you’ve seen is reliable, try searching to see what trusted news sites or fact checkers are saying.

The maps the claims are based on are not satellite images, and they do not show real, observed data on current levels of sulphur dioxide. NASA, which provided the data in the first place, told Full Fact that they are simply forecasts based on weather patterns and historical information about SO2 emissions.

No. The images may say ‘Unicef’ but they are not made by or from Unicef.

Handy tip: If the information is said to come from a named source, try searching on their website or social media to check if they’ve actually said it. You can also look for clues like bad grammar in this instance. Phony URLs, awkward layouts and strange articles should also make you think twice.

It is an old photo that was reportedly taken in South Africa and someone has pasted ‘breaking news’ graphics over the top.

Handy tip: To check images like this yourself, right-click the image and select 'Search Google for image.' Google will then show you previous instances where the photo has been shared.

No. It's a phishing scam. There are a few clues to help spot this. "Relief" is misspelt as "relieve" and the link ends in .com, when the UK government’s website ends in gov.uk.

No. The top message is a genuine text that people across the country received from the government, but the bottom messages are forgeries.

Handy tip: Again, spelling and grammatical errors are a giveaway, as they’re unlikely to be present in official government communications.

No.

Handy tip: There are a number of ways to check this yourself. The low resolution quality of the image and layout should be enough to make you think twice, but there are three sources mentioned: Sony (who own PlayStation), Microsoft (who own Xbox) and BBC News. If these were genuine then searching those names with a few keywords on Google is likely to show you the BBC article or the statements from the two companies explaining the move.

All of the above. 5G has nothing to do with the coronavirus. We can’t stress that enough.