Two high school students were caught for spreading groundless rumors about the influenza A (H1N1) vaccine, police said Thursday.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said the two students spread the rumor by posting articles on a Web site last Friday.
The articles said the government was taking secondary school students as a sample to test the safety of the anti-H1N1 shots and demanding parents to give written consent in case any “troubles” arise. They called on readers to refuse to take the anti-virus vaccine in the article, police said.
When questioned, the two students said the articles were based on what they saw on the Internet.
Based on the articles, another high school student sent out an SMS warning of the risks of the vaccine to dozens of her friends, causing the rumor to spread quickly.
Police are considering seeking an arrest warrant for the two.
“Any type of action spreading groundless rumors about the vaccine will be punished,” a police officer said.