Top 10 Hoaxes That Tricked The World In 2025

“In 2025, the internet became a carnival mirror — everything looked familiar, but the truth was warped.”

That’s how I like to open this: imagine scrolling through your feed, and the world you see doesn’t reflect your reality — it distorts it. That’s what hoaxes are: mirrors that twist the truth, drop the jaw, and then vanish.

This year, digital illusions exploded in scale. From “plant-bugs” to fake ATM shutdowns, each hoax spread like wildfire through panic, wonder, and sheer disbelief. Let’s countdown the Top 10 Virally Believed Hoaxes of 2025, uncover how they worked, and leave you sharper at spotting illusions in your feed.

10. The Return of the “Dangerous Challenge”

“The ghost in the mirror whispers: don’t open that video or face a curse.”

It sounds like urban legend lore, but 2025 revived it: a viral “Shadow Game” challenge told users to play dangerous dares or risk harm. Panic and shares surged.

Yet the entire phenomenon was fabricated — sensationalism dressed up as danger. No credible reports, no victims, no evidence.

These “challenge” hoaxes play on fear and community pressure. Like a ghost story told in whispers, once it's heard, you pass it on.

9. ATM Shutdown Panic: “Dance of the Hillary” Virus

“What if your money vanished overnight — not by hackers, but by belief?”

In May 2025, WhatsApp groups exploded with messages claiming ATMs across India would shut down for 2–3 days due to a ransomware called “Dance of the Hillary.”

Media outlets re-reported, banks had to clarify, and panic grips retrenched. But fact-checkers quickly debunked it. All banks stayed open.

This hoax isn’t about code or machines — it’s psychological warfare. A lie triggers queues, panic withdrawals, and distrust. It weaponizes belief.

In digital cyberwarfare, the human mind is often the weakest firewall.

Hoax bottom line: fear is more contagious than a virus.

8. WhatsApp Gold & The Video That Could “Hack You”

“Every comeback deserves a sequel — even in hoaxes.”

Old ghost stories never die — they just get refreshed. On October 14, a decade-old hoax resurfaced: “Don’t open Martinelli video — it hacks your phone! Update to WhatsApp Gold now!”

Thousands believed it again. The same lines, reused code of fear.

This shows how hoaxes become franchise products: recycled, rebranded, re-viralized.

7. Bomb Threats to Schools in Vadodara (June–July 2025)

“They mailed danger to classrooms — and watched panic bloom.”

Between 23 June and 4 July 2025, at least four bomb threat hoaxes targeted private schools in Vadodara, Gujarat.

Schools were evacuated, parents panicked, local police teams scrambled — but no explosives were found. The threats, signed “Madras Tigers” or Umar Farooq, vanished into cyberspace.

This one was a mass psychological terror campaign. It proved how digital illusions can control real lives.

Lesson: Never assume a threat is real — but always treat it cautiously until verified.

6. Celebrity Death Hoaxes (Asha Bhosle, Tyson, etc.)

“When the world dies — again and again — credibility decays.”

2025 saw many public figures faked as dead. One high-profile case: legendary Indian singer Asha Bhosle was falsely reported dead. Her son publicly affirmed her being alive.

Across platforms: social media posts, memes, and news snippets carried “RIP” tags.

Why it works: death is the ultimate attention magnet. And when it comes with a picture or “official” statement, few question.

Lesson: Always check official sources before mourning online.

5. Florus Fugitivus — The Beetle That Became a Flower

“A bug that blooms? The internet’s most beautiful lie.”

This one sounds like Pixar writing wildlife documentaries. A viral clip claimed an insect in Nevada’s Red Rock Canyon unfurled into a flower when threatened. The name: Florus Fugitivus.

Millions watched, debated, doubted — before scientists and digital sleuths declared it an AI-generated illusion. No real species, no peer-review, zero biological basis.

It’s a perfect hoax: visual beauty + biological wonder + scientific tone = emotional virality.

Lesson: If it shocks what biology allows, your skepticism should double.

4. The “Dance of the Hillary” Ransomware Returns (Resurfacing Hoax)

“The same phantom virus, haunting again.”

Though we covered it above, it deserves reinsertion: this was a recycled hoax from 2017. It resurfaced in 2025 with new fear, new panic.

When a hoax sleeps long enough, it becomes folklore. And once it wakes, it’s hard to kill.

This one shows: hoaxes aren’t always born new — sometimes they just wake up from a long sleep.

3. Fake Payment Screenshots in UPI / Online Trades

“A picture worth a thousand rupees — until you check your balance.”

In 2025, scammers increasingly used fake payment screenshots to trick sellers. A buyer sends a fake “payment success” image, demands delivery — but no funds were ever transferred.

Affected: small businesses, freelancers, online sellers — anyone who trusts a screenshot without verification.

This hoax leverages trust in visuals. It’s banking 101: proof is not in what looks paid, but what is paid.

Lesson: Always confirm the funds in your actual bank app — not on someone else’s screenshot.

2. Nature Hoax Boom (Beyond Florus Fugitivus)

“When nature’s morphs — digital, impossible, viral.”

Florus Fugitivus was the flagship, but 2025 saw multiple insect/plant hybrid claims: mantis-flowers, leaf-bugs that “blossomed.”

Why? Because we want to believe nature still hides wonder. These hoaxes tap that longing.

Each was debunked once shared by scientists or fact-checkers.

Lesson: Beauty can seduce truth. Always ask: did a biologist see this, or just a digital artist?

1. The ATM Apocalypse That Never Happened (Top Hoax)

“A digital panic declared war on real-world banks — and lost.”

Ranking #1 goes to the viral ATM shutdown hoax of May 2025, often tied to escalating India–Pakistan tensions. A message claimed ATMs would stop working, that all online banking would freeze, that “Dance of the Hillary” malware was to blame.

Banks and government bodies were forced to issue clarifications. Panic-led ATM queues appeared. The rumor turned into a phantom financial crisis.

Why this one tops the list: it hijacked everyday life — money, banking, trust — rather than purely visual shock. It turned reality into rumor.

Lesson: The most dangerous hoax is the one that attacks your trust in basics.

🔍 Patterns Behind the Mirrors: Why They Spread

These hoaxes aren’t random. They follow a design:

Element Purpose

Emotional Trigger Fear, wonder, urgency make people share first, question later.

Visual Shock Images or videos boost virality.

Authority Illusion Scientific names, official tone, pseudo-logos.

Reuse & Recycling Old lies returned as new; expired memes revived.

Exploiting Trust People trust visuals, names, memes — unless proven otherwise.

🛡️ How to Rescue Yourself From the Madness

Pause before you share.

Check credible sources (scientific journals, official press, fact-check sites).

Do reverse image or video search to detect fakes.

Ask: Does this violate basic logic — biology, finance, physics?

Train your skepticism — like a muscle you can’t skip.

Because in 2025, misinformation didn’t just trick the mind — it aimed at the gut.

The Future of Truth

We live in an age where pixels can lie, data can masquerade, and virality can rewrite logic. The hoaxes of 2025 were a warning: reality is no longer safe from deception.

But there is hope. The same nets that spread lies can catch them too — if we equip ourselves with patience, curiosity, and critical thinking.

Next time your feed whispers a thunderous claim — remember: mirrors can lie. The only truth is what you verify.