What is misanthropy, a word cited in a false alert on cell phones in Brazil
Fake alerts sent to cell phones in several states in Brazil in the early hours of this Saturday (20) caught the attention of users due to their surprising content: "Extreme Alert - Civil Defense: misantropi4". The message raised doubts about the meaning of the word "misanthropy", whose last letter was changed in the false warning.
According to the Michaelis On-line dictionary, misanthropy means "horror to humanity or aversion to human nature" and, by extension, "a state characterized by deep sadness; depression, melancholy"; "tendency to avoid the company of other people or to cultivate isolation."
In addition to the alert sent by the Cellbroadcast severe warning tool, operated by Anatel, residents of the cities of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro also reported having received SMS messages with similar content. A text message sent to a user in Rio contains the word "misanthrope", that is, an individual who has an aversion to humanity and who avoids the company of other people.
In a statement, the Civil Defense of São Paulo stated that the alert was not sent by any of its agents and that, to date, there is no record of an incident that justifies the issuance of an extreme alert related to the reported content.
The statement also explains that the Cellbroadcast tool has been temporarily disabled until the situation is clarified. The São Paulo Civil Defense said it contacted Anatel and other institutions involved in the system's operation to investigate the origin of the message.
The Civil Defense of Rio de Janeiro confirmed that it did not trigger any alert and said that the communication received by users "results from an instability in the IDAP/Cell Broadcast alert sending system, a platform under the responsibility of the National Civil Defense, linked to the Federal Government".
The body also clarified that there is, so far, no risk situation related to natural disasters that justifies issuing an alert to the population of Rio de Janeiro and that it continues to monitor the situation.
In Paraná, where the first warnings were reported in the country, the state government stated that it did not trigger the warning and that there is no severe event predicted for Curitiba. The Civil Defense of Paraná said it contacted the National Civil Defense and Anatel about the case.
CNN contacted Anatel and has not yet received a response.
Source: CNN