[Asia Economy Reporter Changhwan Lee] Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense announced that "the Chinese Communist Party attempted to spread 272 cases of fake news in Taiwan from the 1st of this month until noon today," local media reported on the 8th.
Chen Yulin, Deputy Director of the Political Warfare Bureau of Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense, explained at a briefing that "out of the 272 cases, 130 aimed to lower the morale of soldiers and civilians."
Most of the attempts among the 272 cases occurred after the live-fire exercises targeting Taiwan by the Chinese military were conducted on the 4th. The fake news fell into three categories: lowering the morale of soldiers and civilians (130 cases), creating an atmosphere for forced unification (91 cases), and attacking the authority of the Taiwan government (51 cases).
Deputy Director Chen emphasized, "Fake news such as missile attacks on Taiwan Taoyuan Airport and Chinese warships approaching Taiwan's eastern coast circulated on social media."
He added, "These fake news stories were widely shared and distributed," urging, "They should not be underestimated." He further stated, "The public should focus on the information released by Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense and not pay attention to rumors."
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