In the wake of the recent attack at Bondi Beach, misinformation and disinformation were disseminated across platforms at lightning speed. This chaotic explosion has muddled the public’s interpretation of the dangerous incident. From misidentifying the perpetrator to dictating an entire false narrative, many of these conspiracy theories have since spread like wildfire across TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), and beyond. This concerning dynamic underscores the difficulties of truth verification in a time when information is readily manipulated at unprecedented levels.
Having occurred on a busy weekend, the Bondi Beach attack was compounded by a flurry of online responses. Many of these responses, though, are unbelievable. Disinformation watchdog NewsGuard found one of the largest. A hoax news story, falsely credited to a fictional “political correspondent” with no connection to Australia, went viral. These kinds of articles are rarely, if ever, fact-checked and have the potential to seriously mislead the public.
Then, an electrifying picture of an attack survivor’s return home surfaced and further stirred the mix of emotions. This person was mistakenly dubbed a ‘crisis actor. This targeted disinformation campaign mischaracterized the individual’s experience. This was an attempt to delegitimize the independent media coverage of the incident.
One of those retagged was the activist Ahmed Al-Ahmed. He’s a Syrian-born convenience store owner who distinguish himself by horrifying one of the active assailants through genuine bravery, and usually it saved a life. Although he was very brave, he was still inaccurately portrayed on social media, creating a cascade of lies about what he did and who he was.
In a second instance, Naveed Akram, an Australian-born national, had incorrect allegations reported about his nationality and participation in the attack. This disinformation goes viral, exacerbating on-the-ground tensions that already exist in the community. In doing so, it further fuels baseless fears of certain groups.
Deceptive social media claims spread a screenshot of a Facebook post. This profile incorrectly pointed the finger at a man named David Cohen as having ties to the attacks. These kinds of maneuvers are designed to create division and distrust within communities.
One of the most concerning pieces of this disinformation tsunami was a site operating under the name Amazing Blogs, mostly in Italian. It spread misinformation, including fake quotes supposedly from Australian politician Pauline Hanson. The made-up statements misleadingly implied that Israel or India had planned the attacks as ‘false flag’ operations. This has made it even harder for people to understand what happened that day.
Grok then incorrectly labelled video of the onslaught as filmed during Tropical Cyclone Alfred. This episode is an all too frequent reminder of how misinformation can spontaneously bubble to the surface during tumultuous events. They even egregiously misidentified a photo of an Israeli hostage being held by Hamas as Ahmed Al-Ahmed. This mistake makes it more difficult to parse what his actual level of involvement was.
AI-generated pictures of Bondi shooting survivor Arsen Ostrovsky contributed to this barrage of damning content posted online after the attack. Ostrovsky, who was grazed by a bullet during the incident, provided several interviews on television while visibly bandaged and bloodied. These images they used were doctored—doctored to spread the disinformation about his experience.
A random social media post mistakenly identified a man in a Pakistan cricket shirt as Naveed Akram. This false photo-illustration was used to imply that the two men attacked were Live Action’s aggressors. These types of posts further the damaging stereotypes and misconceptions about people who share a certain ethnic ancestry.
Additionally, other posts shared images claiming to depict a man responsible for the shooting identified as “Khaled al-Nablusi.” He was described derogatorily as a “Muslim migrant” and a “Lebanese national of Palestinian descent,” further inflaming community tensions and perpetuating harmful narratives.
Amidst this dangerous and confusing sea of misinformation, one other person featured in these pervasive, deceptive posts, said.
“I am completely innocent and have no connection whatsoever to what happened.”
This announcement highlights the harmful impact that wall-based misinformation has on innocent lives and public perception.
Further, quotes supposedly attributed to Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese about Pauline Hanson went viral without fact-checking. Terms such as “weak, spineless coward” and “a real piece of tiny garbage” incorrectly became attached to him. This provoked an environment of chaos and distrust for those observing the events. Other unverified claims included assertions that “millions of Muslim citizens in Australia could lose their citizenship” and references to “ISIS brides,” all attributed to Hanson but lacking substantiation.
The Bondi Beach attack was marked by an especially intense viral cycle of misinformation. This illustrates how fast narratives can get out of touch with the reality during these digital times. As misinformation continues to proliferate, it becomes increasingly crucial for individuals to scrutinize sources and verify claims before sharing them online.
