Beware of Hoax WhatsApp Message Asking to Register for Free Laptops Offered by The Government…

There are plenty of online hoaxes spread through social media platforms, especially through WhatsApp. At Fact Crescendo, we are always alert for such online frauds. Due to which we came across this WhatsApp message claiming that government was providing free laptop for the youth and requested users to get register to avail this offer.

We did a fact check about the message and found out that it is just another hoax. The details of the hoax message and its truth is explained further.

Social Media Posts:

WhatsApp is flooded with this “FREE LAPTOP SCHEME 2020” messages which were accompanied with an external website link as seen in the screenshot below.

“Click Below to Book Your Free Laptop Now

👉 https://oficayuda.club/offer/”

A Facebook user called Shaman PushpaKumara had questioned about the social media posts of government providing free laptop for youth as seen below.

Facebook Link | Archived Link

Hence, we decided to check the viral message and find out the truth. The details of the investigation are as such…

Fact Check

First, we observed that the website link provided along with the viral forward message did not belong to any official government domain (gov.lk).

When we clicked the link, and it was redirected to an external website as seen below.

We followed the step after giving a mobile number and sharing the message 10 times on WhatsApp as instructed. A message popped up requesting to complete any of three surveys. After finishing the surveys, shipping details were to be entered; however, we did not proceed further.

Responding to these fake forwards, we noticed an official advisory message issued by the Department of Government Information of Sri Lanka. Dismissing the claims as false, the official statement went on to state that government is making necessary steps to provide free laptops and tabs to students and there is no registration required for these purposes, as claimed in the viral message.

News.lk | DGI-SL

We also noticed several posts on similar fake messages, which had been shared few months ago from different parts of the world.

We have carried out several fact checks on such fake forwards in the past as well as seen here and here.

Conclusion:

From our more investigation, we can confirm that the message being shared on WhatsApp and other messaging platforms claiming that the government is providing free laptops for youth and requesting to register via and external website link is fake. Government of Sri Lanka has also advised users not to fall for such frauds.