A few websites reported a few days before the Grammy Awards that R&B singer Rihanna was dead, but it turned out to be just another hoax.
The rumors of Rihanna's death came a few days after Miley Cyrus become a victim of death hoax, with doctored image of the 21-year-old singer circulating on social networking sites alleging that she died of drug and alcohol abuse.
A Facebook post that reads "RIP - Singer Rihanna Found Dead After Being Raped! 2014" was doing the rounds for a few days. Another fake post reads: "At about 11 a.m. ET on Tuesday ... our beloved singer Rihanna passed away. Rihanna was born on February 20, 1988 in Saint Michael. She will be missed but not forgotten. Please show your sympathy and condolences by commenting on and liking this page."
Rihanna has not spoken to media on the hoax but confirmed that she is very much alive by writing "$weet $urprise, pretty phucking rad! Thank you" on her official Twitter account after her album Unapologetic bagged Best Urban Contemporary Album award at the Grammys 2014 on Sunday. It was her eighth Grammy till date.
The Epoch Times had confirmed on Saturday that the reports of Rihanna's demiss was just another celebrity death hoax and the link provided by a site leads to a fake video website that looks like YouTube that may contain malware. It added that the photo of Rihanna with bruised face was the one that TMZ obtained a few years ago after she had a fight with her then boyfriend Chris Brown. She is said to be in Brazil for the past several days and had posted a photo on her Instagram account.
A few websites reported that the death hoax link (not provided in the article) could contain virus, and so readers are advised not to click any link associated with the particular hoax.
It may be recalled that several celebrities like Jackie Chan, Oprah Winfrey, Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean), Angelina Jolie, Will Smith, Celine Dion, Shaggy, Eminem and Miley Cyrus have become victims of death hoax in the past.
