An image with tens of thousands of likes and shares on Facebook allegedly shows a boy who was bullied for liking the band One Direction, and now requires facial surgery.

The image and story are fake.

Let’s take a look at the image and caption being circulated:

This poor boy was bullied most of his life and then beaten with a 4×2. All because he liked One direction. He is in hospital but he can’t pay for his surgery. All face companies have agree to donate $10 for every like and $50 for every share.

The image and story are full of holes. Consider:

• Glasses – Despite a beating which requires facial reconstruction, the boy’s glasses remain unbroken.
• One Direction – The boy has been bullied his entire life for liking a band which has existed for only a couple of years.
• Blood – The blood on the boy’s mouth looks fake.
• Donations – Based on the number of likes and shares as of this writing (67,870 likes and 16,820 shares), the total donation amount would be over $1.5 million ($10 x 67870=$678,700 plus $50 x 16820=$841,000).
• Time – This story has been circulating for at least 5 months. Are we to believe that this boy is still awaiting surgery?
• Face companies – No specifics are given as to who or what these “face companies” are or what they will donate.

Why circulate a fake bullying story?

Companies do not donate based on likes or shares because it is a violation of Facebook’s terms. Fake stories such as this one which prompt readers to like or share are done so typically as a way to quickly increase a page’s popularity on Facebook. Many Facebook users like or share blindly without putting much thought into the image or caption.

Bottom Line

This is just another example of a fraudulent attempt to gain followers on Facebook. The story and the photo are fake. Liking and sharing such photos will only encourage more fakes to be posted, which will further degrade the social network.