Wayne Knight, known for his role as Newman in Seinfeld, but also in Jurassic Park, is not dead, but the wizard wants you to believe he is.
The posts that have begun to circulate are titled: “Seinfeld Actor 'Newman' Killed in Tractor-Trailer Accident” “Seinfeld Actor 'Newman' Killed in Tractor-Trailer Accident accident with a tractor" and states:
Actor Wayne Knight, known to most from his role on NBC's Seinfeld where he played the character Newman has died and two other passengers were seriously injured when their vehicle struck a parked trailer late Saturday night along Route 446 near the Pennsylvania state line."
As the Hoax Slayer claims, the fake news about Wayne Knight's death was published in a by clicking here called eBuzzd, which specializes in such fake stories.
It seems that too many have believed the hoax, and the actor posted the following Twitter message:
"Some of you will be glad to hear this, others strangely disappointed, but ... I am alive and well!"
There is nothing malicious in this hoax except perhaps the exscammeaning of the public. But several times we have seen cybercriminals use popular stories to attract attention and achieve their nefarious goals, which are usually the distribution of malicious software, or the transfer of the victim to phishing sites.
