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An illustration showing several different images from previous fact checks, including a polar bear on an ice floe, a damaged airliner, a person browsing social media, hands preparing a vaccine, UFOs and an AI-generated image

Fact check

Viral fake news on social media, false claims on COVID-19 or disinformation on elections — DW's fact check team debunks, explains and uses in-depth research techniques to separate fact from fiction.

Skip next section Reports & Analysis

Reports & Analysis

Spanien Torre Pacheco 2025 | Anti-Migranten-Unruhen nach Angriff auf älteren Mann

Fact check: Misinformation fuels anti-migrant riots in Spain

Fact check: Misinformation fuels anti-migrant riots in Spain

False claims and misleading videos spread online after the assault of an elderly man — and exacerbated the tensions.
SocietyJuly 18, 2025
A screenshot of a post on X with a photo of a woman applying sunscreen

Fact check: Does sunscreen increase skin cancer risk?

Fact check: Does sunscreen increase skin cancer risk?

Social media claims sunscreen causes cancer—but science says otherwise. Here's what experts and studies actually reveal.
HealthJuly 17, 2025
A photo released by the Department of Homeland Security shows men being led into a plane as they are being deported

Fact check: Viral ICE deportation claims debunked

Fact check: Viral ICE deportation claims debunked

DW checks viral videos claiming ICE throws deportees into the ocean, revealing misleading and AI-generated content.
PoliticsJuly 9, 2025
USA Kerrville 2025 | Hubschrauber überfliegt Überflutungsgebiet nach Sturzflut

Fact check: Texas floods — cloud seeding theories dismissed

Fact check: Texas floods — cloud seeding theories dismissed

Scientists have dismissed conspiracy theories that the Texas floods were caused by cloud seeding. A DW Fact Check.
ClimateJuly 8, 2025
A TikTok screenshot showing a male reporter standing in front of a red British post box with UK flags in the background. He holds a microphone and appears to interview a woman about the upcoming election.

Fact check: How to spot AI-generated newscasts

Fact check: How to spot AI-generated newscasts

AI-generated newscasts are flooding your feed. Here's how to spot them before they fool you.
PoliticsJuly 2, 2025
Image of a protester holding the Kenyan flag being sprayed with a pink substance

Fact check: Fake videos cloud Kenya protest coverage

Fact check: Fake videos cloud Kenya protest coverage

Viral videos and images from Kenya's 2025 protests are misleading—DW Fact Check finds old and AI-generated content.
PoliticsJuly 2, 2025
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Skip next section A closer look

A closer look

A woman searches for videos on social media (Photo: dpa)
Image: Weronika Peneshko/dpa/picture alliance

How do I spot fakes and disinformation?

How can you recognize and verify fake news when you see them online? Here are some tips from the DW fact check team.

Fact check: How to spot AI-generated newscasts

PoliticsJuly 2, 2025

Fact check: Real or fake — can you tell the difference?

PoliticsApril 2, 2025

Fact check: How do I spot errors in AI chatbots?

MediaApril 6, 2025
All 17 stories
Skip next section A closer look

A closer look

Video fact checking: How do I spot fake news? | Fact Check
Image: DW

Team DW Fact check

Find out here how we work, who we are and how you can reach us.

How DW's fact-checking team works

PoliticsMarch 18, 202410:37 min

DW Fact check: Meet the team

March 31, 2023

How to reach DW Fact check

SocietyDecember 13, 2023
All 10 stories
Skip next section In the spotlight

In the spotlight

A satelite image depicts a triangular facility with columns of smoke rising from two ostensibly damaged sites

Fact check: Image mislabels Iran base as Israeli institute

A viral post misidentifies an Iranian missile base as Israel’s Weizmann Institute. DW Fact check investigates the claim.
PoliticsJuly 1, 2025
Screenshot of a drone video showing mass destruction in Gaza

Fact check: Viral drone video of Gaza destruction is real

DW has verified a viral drone video showing mass destruction caused by Israeli strikes at the Jabaliya refugee camp.
PoliticsJune 19, 2025
A sperm whale, which washed up on Hunstanton beach in Norfolk, is covered by water as the tide comes in.

Fact check: Debunking Trump's false claims on wind energy

US President Trump has claimed that "windmills are driving whales crazy" and "are not truly green." What's the truth?
Nature and EnvironmentJune 7, 2025
Stock photo: fingers are seen typing on a keyboard illuminated in red

Fact check: Is Russia's new fact-checking platform credible?

Russia's GFCN claims to fight fake news. But experts say the platform peddles propaganda.
MediaJune 4, 2025
A photo montage shows a young man wearing a puffy black jacket standing in what appeares to be a German train station. The image is marked as AI-generated and stamped with the word "Fake"

Hamburg knife attack: How fake images spread right-wing hate

Muhammad al-Muhammad is a Syrian who helped stop last week's knife attack. The right has called the story into question.
SocietyMay 31, 2025
A videostill of an AI-generated sermon showing Pope Leo XIV (left) and Burkina Faso junta leader Ibrahim Trarore

Fact check: Pope Leo targeted by misinformation

Pope Leo XIV has become the target of widespread misinformation, some of which is AI-generated.
ReligionMay 27, 2025
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