ST. JOHN, Kan. (KSNW) – An old viral Facebook post from over a decade ago is making the rounds again and causing headaches for 911.

The Stafford County Sheriff’s Office says you should only dial 911 to reach emergency services. They say their 911 dispatchers have received several calls from people who dialed 112 after seeing the post.

112 is the international number for emergencies, allowing anyone worldwide to reach a local emergency department wherever they may be. The post tells an apocryphal story about a woman who used 112 to get 911 to report there was an unmarked police car behind her with a red light attempting to pull her over. In the story, real police show up and arrest the fake police officer behind her who turned out to be a convicted rapist.

The story never actually happened, but it encourages everyone to share it to “save a life.” The post originally appeared back in 2013. However, it actually began as a viral email back in the early 2000s.

While in some instances, you may reach emergency services by dialing 112, it doesn’t always work. The Stafford County Sheriff’s Office says the problem is that people are testing to see if the number works and reaching 911 dispatchers. You should only call 911 if you have an emergency.

Misinformation is easy to spread online. According to the American Psychological Association, misinformation is more likely to be shared by people when it aligns with personal identity or social norms, is novel, and/or elicits strong emotions.

Because of how social media works, algorithms that track user engagement prioritize posts that can spur negative emotions like fear, anger, and outrage, making them more likely to be amplified and reach more people. So, a post about a young woman whose life was endangered and being rescued using three simple numbers and encouraging others to share can quickly spread.

The best way to avoid spreading misinformation is knowing how to spot it before you share it. You can use many tools online to verify something before you hit the post button.

The St. Louis Community College Libraries has compiled an extensive list of websites you can use to verify something before you share that you can see by clicking here.