In the past 2-3 weeks of the coronavirus spread, I have regularly argued with my parents about WhatsApp forwards relating to the disease.

My parents would receive a message, turn to me and say, “This has to be true, they are giving statistics”.

And then the debate would start.

I would check government websites and show my parents that the forward they received was a fake. One day I spent almost 30 minutes trying to explain to them about the fallacy of a particular forward.

In this era of digitalisation, people consume most of their information from social media and online platforms.

At the beginning of the pandemic, WhatsApp saw around 20 percent spike in global usage. Towards the latter part of the spread, the messaging app has seen global usage increase by over 51 percent. People in quarantine and self-isolation are using WhatsApp to stay in touch with their families and friends.

At the same time, people also absorb information through WhatsApp forwards which are not necessarily true at all times. Mainly it is two categories of people that spend most of their time on phones; millennials and senior citizens.

Though political leaders, actors and popular figures keep telling us to avoid rumours in such grim times, how do you know if a forward is true?

When elders in your family groups on WhatsApp send across a message, it's your first instinct to believe them. The thought process behind it is that they probably know what they are talking about. Or when your friends and colleagues send you messages about the spread of the pandemic, you would think for a minute that it can be true. The fundamental question is what would someone get out of creating a false tread of messages? Or why would this not be true, it has statistically representation.

Many messages about the pandemic are not just coming from our own country but from various countries that have also been hit. Messages making the rounds say that these many people in India are going to get infected, these many deaths are expected in the next two weeks. Pictures and videos coming from various countries of people infected with the virus. One message read ‘don’t open your doors to anyone, they say they are coming to do tests but rob you instead’. Messages that say eating certain foods and drinking certain things acts as a cure, medicines you should take if you have coronavirus.

This is one of those times when you should put on your thinking caps and distinguish between the sources of the information. Raise questions, ask people where they saw this, where they got this information from. Investigate, verify every single detail and then decide whether to believe it or not.

Here are a few ways to check if these messages have any truth to them or not.

1. Trust only government websites:

This should be your first fallback. The Health Ministry website keeps updating advisories and information about the number of cases once every few hours.

2. For state-specific information, check out state health ministry websites:

Information on the number of cases in the state and measures taken by the state can be found here. You can also find helplines in case of any emergency.

3. For Health Related Queries:

World Health Organization has many comprehensive studies on the virus. You can find advisories on preventive measures and information on research conducted on the coronavirus. You can also ask questions and WHO will answer. For India alone, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is leading the research and puts out information and health-related advisories.

4. Cross check

See if you find the same news on more than one news website or news agency. And of course, we journalist are always there to give you the latest news. You can also take a look at the Press Information Bureau website for the latest updates.

What is more important is that you make your own information checker. ‘Stop. Check. Then Forward’ that should be your mantra.

Besides questioning the reliability of these messages, one should not panic as so much information can be overwhelming. As you take in all this information, it’s necessary to stay calm. Just stop for a second and think before hitting the forward option. You can be the person to stop the chain if you let your rational mind work and overcome the panic. And try as much as possible to stir away from forwards and divert your attention to doing something productive during this lockdown.