A viral Facebook post which claims to have video footage of a woman who fell down into a bear cage is a scam. Another post that is titled, “Hungry Bear Tearing Woman to Pieces in Seconds” and uses the same image is also fake.
The whole post reads: “[RAW FULL VIDEO] Shocking Death Of Mother Who Fell Down into a Bear Cage This Morning ... This video is very shocking. Click on the picture to watch this rare uncut death!”
The image shows a polar bear going after a woman in a pool at a zoo, which actually did happen in 2009. However, the Facebook scam doesn’t have footage of it.
According to The Telegraph, the woman jumped into the polar bear enclosure at the Berlin Zoo.
“This woman’s behaviour not only put her life in danger but also that of the staff who had to rescue her,” a zoo spokesperson said at the time. ”However, we do have guns and we would have been prepared to use them without hesitation if it was felt it was the only way to save the woman.”
The woman at the time was identified only as “Mandy K,” who is a mother and teacher who was saddened over the loss over her job. She was mauled and bitten by the bears after she climbed over the safety walls before swimming out to the animals.
Regarding the Facebook scam, security expert Graham Cluley said, “But the message spreading currently on Facebook is a scam, claiming that the accidental has just happened (and with deadly consequences) to encourage ghoulish social networkers into clicking on the link.”
“However, if you do click on the link you will find yourself not taken to a genuine news report, or even a YouTube video, but a webpage that claims you need to verify your age by completing some online surveys,” he added.
It’s not recommended to share the Facebook post or complete the survey.
If you’ve shared or “liked” the post, it’s best to delete it from your wall and “un-like” it.
