OK, this one has to be a troll.
A new image that goes viral on social media claims that it is a diagram showing the operation of a 5G chip inserted into coronavirus vaccines – part of a long-standing online conspiracy theory.
Here in Italy, people have started sharing this figure, claiming that it is the diagram of the 5G chip inserted into the kovid vaccine.
In fact, it is the electric circuit of a guitar pedal and I believe it was a great idea to put it in the kovid vaccine💡 pic.twitter.com/qXKnv7VVly
– Mario Fusco @ (@mariofusco) 28 December 2020
What the image actually shows, however, is a circuit board for a guitar pedal.
A Boss Metal Zone guitar pedal, to be exact.
Wrong information about Coronavirus is nothing new on the internet. Even the bizarre (and false!) Claims that 5G technology is causing COVID-19 have become so common on social media that large platforms have had to take action against these conspiracies.
However, this latest 5G conspiracy theory of the coronavirus takes the cake. It’s so over-the-top that it’s really coming as a joke.
The image started on social media when user Mario Fusco shared it in a tweet saying the conspiracy was being shared in Italy. The one in his screenshot points to an anonymous self-publishing platform, Telegraph. Attempts to find a source elsewhere have been unsuccessful. But it definitely loves this story.
So it’s probably a troll. After all, the diagram still contains terms such as ‘bass’, ‘gain’, ‘treble’ and ‘footswitch’. Even if you are not musically inclined, the words should be a give away that it may not actually be a secret 5G coronavirus vaccine microchip.
But even if we know something about conspiracy theories, it does not matter. This will not stop the image and associated misinformation from being conveyed as truth by some less skilled corners on the internet (hello,).