Rumours and even fake websites are circulating the Internet that purport that popular US televangelist Joel Osteen is resigning after questioning his own faith, renouncing God and closing his Texas church.
However it appears that Mr. Osteen has been the victim of an elaborate hoax which started a few days ago after a coordinated online social & media attack was actioned.
In this instance the attack consisted of a fake website designed to look like the real Osteen website was launched at the same time as a fake Twitter account and fake YouTube video featuring photoshopped “news articles” appeared – all “confirming” the resignation of the Christian leader.
However fans of Osteen needn’t worry, as the pastor has confirmed through ABC news that the news was nothing more than a hoax – also confirming the hoax via his official Twitter feed as well.
And according to the Huffington Post who spoke exclusively to the person behind the hoax, the entire ruse was orchestrated to “prove a point”. Transmitted via email, the hoaxer told the HuffPost –
The hoaxer, who remains anonymous, also told the HuffPost that he would continue to play out the hoax for as long as he could.
The hoax has duped many thousands of people and the coordinated attack of multiple official looking sites and feeds added an unusual authenticity to such a fake story.
Such well planned hoaxes can be very difficult to dismiss but you should always be careful when reading “breaking news” to always ensure you are reading official websites, twitter feeds or Facebook pages, because in the case of this hoax, only fake sites and feeds were used.
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