25 bizarre viral stories of 2012

Superstorm Sandy Twitter hoax uncovered

During superstorm Sandy, Twitter user @ComfortablySmug spread misinformation about the storm in New York City, including rumors that Gov. Andrew Cuomo was trapped in Manhattan and that the New York Stock Exchange was flooded. It was discovered by BuzzFeed that 29-year-old hedge fund analyst Shashank Tripathi was behind the tweets. Tripathi later apologized for making a series of "irresponsible and inaccurate tweets."

Credit: Twitter/ComfortablySmug