Technology

Can a beam attached to a vehicle with a magnet move the vehicle forward and thus function as free, perpetual propulsion, replacing petrol? No, that's not true: This would not work, as a mechanism such as the one shown in a video circulating on social media would defy the laws of physics. The claim appeared in a video (archived here)…

Do iPhones secretly use infrared flashes to take and store pictures of your face? No, that's not true: On models that support it, iPhones have an Attention Aware feature, which checks if you're looking at the device to prevent it from locking or dimming the screen, and a Face ID feature, to provide authentication through facial recognition. Both features don't…

Is the ecological impact of combustion-engine cars less than that of electric vehicles (EVs)? No, that's not true: Despite the environmental impact of battery production for EVs, studies indicate that electric vehicles are more ecologically friendly throughout their lifespan when compared to combustion-engine cars, even in cases where the electricity used to charge EV batteries is sourced from coal power…

Did Elon Musk create Neuralink to ensure that people have only "correct" thoughts? No, that's not true: Neuralink is meant to help people with disabilities, like quadriplegia, for example, function better and interact and communicate with the world -- it is not meant to control what a person thinks. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) published on TikTok…

Does Neil Armstrong´s refusal to swear on the Bible that he landed on the moon mean that the landing did not happen? No, that's not true: The author of the claim is a conspiracy theorist who spreads that the moon landing was faked, despite plenty of evidence from NASA and other parties that the astronauts from the Apollo missions walked…

Can the Alaska-based High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP), a former military project for studying the ionosphere, be used as weapon to change weather? No, that's not true: Contacted by Lead Stories, HAARP confirmed that the facility "cannot create or amplify natural disasters." Also, other scientists confirmed that HAARP was not capable of causing natural disasters, controlling minds, or…

Did Meta remove a Czech freelance reporter's Facebook post and delete her profile because she wrote that Kyiv is a normal functioning city? No, that's not true: the journalists removed the post where she described everyday life in Kyiv and her journey to Ukraine, saying she had received abusive threats from social media users. The claim appeared in a video…

Can Amazon voice assistant Alexa foretell the future - and did it predict the start of WWIII? No, that's not true: there is no device that can foretell the future and Amazon says it cannot replicate this particular response. The claim that Alexa predicted the start of World War III is shown in a video (archived here) published by TikTok…