Times Verified: Italy won't be FIFA World Cup 'wild card' entry this yr

Cristiano Ronaldo to quit football in protest of Manchester United." This and "Italy to enter as a 'wild card' team to play FIFA World Cup this year" were among the thousands of forwarded messages that TOI busted as fake recently through its campaign 'Times Verified'.

Launched nationally on November 21 last year, the initiative which was born in Mumbai-aims to break the chain of viral misinformation and disinformation that has been infecting social media groups. Under this campaign, readers send unverified or suspicious messages doing the rounds of social media to this paper on WhatsApp number 9819888887 and our expert panel made up of reporters, editors and representatives from the municipal authorities and the government - tap into their sources to verify its credibility.