Faked news articles appear online promoting cryptocurrency schemes
Links for the articles have surfaced on Facebook to readers with headlines such as 'Online platforms allow investing in stocks and cryptocurrencies' and 'Now anyone can become an investor'.
One article, made to look like a genuine WalesOnline article but with the url ending with camelstage.com, even had a picture of First Minister Eluned Morgan and a made-up 'interview' between her and journalists.
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The quote 'this is a special investment system, supported by the state and designed for the earnings of ordinary Welsh citizens' is attributed to her, but the First Minister has not said this and the interview is fake.
Another fake article made to look like it was published on WalesOnline, complete with the website's usual logo at the top of the page, had the headline 'Welsh Government launches state investment platform', inviting people to 'safely invest and multiply their capital threshold'.
This is categorically a fake advertisement and people who see such items or articles on Facebook or on any other social media platform are advised not to click on the link, and certainly not to sign up to any investments offered within it.
A spokesman for the Welsh Government said: 'This is a fake advert. We notified the Advertising Standards Authority last month and they had it taken down immediately.
"We would never ask people to invest money, and we ask anyone who spots similar fake adverts to report them to us or the Advertising Standards Authority.'
WalesOnline Editor David James said: 'There are fake articles circulating which appear to be news pieces encouraging people to invest in cryptocurrency schemes.
"One of these articles has been designed to look as if it is on WalesOnline. It is being promoted on Facebook and claims that the scheme is backed by the Welsh Government.
'We would urge readers to look at the url of an article if they are concerned about its legitimacy. These articles appear to be hosted on camelstage.com. All genuine walesonline articles are hosted on www.walesonline.co.uk.'
Fact-checkers Full Fact give the following tips for spotting fake news:
A trusted source is your safest option.
Look for the little clues: phony URLs, bad spelling, or awkward layouts.
On social media, check their handle to verify the name matches.
Read the whole story and watch out for images, numbers, and quotes that don't have sources or that might have been taken out of context.
If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.
If you spot what you believe to be a fake WalesOnlines story, send the URL and where you saw it to newsdesk@walesonline.co.uk and we can report it.
Meta has removed stories reported on Facebook but new stories have re-surfaced. WalesOnline approached Meta for a comment.
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Faked news articles appear online promoting cryptocurrency schemes
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