A second fake social media post in as many weeks targeting Barbados’ relationship with the United States has drawn sharp condemnation, with Minister of Foreign Affairs Kerrie Symmonds denouncing the viral message as a deliberate attempt to tarnish the country’s reputation.
Symmonds described the post, which falsely claimed that the US had issued its highest-level travel advisory—Level 4 “Do Not Travel”—against Barbados, as “fake news”.
“There is no basis for this fake news story going around,” Symmonds told Barbados TODAY.
“It is deeply unfortunate that these types of things happen. People obviously go out of their way to try to destroy the image of the country.”
The United States Embassy in Bridgetown also issued a formal statement on Friday, confirming that Barbados remains at Level 1: Exercise Normal Precautions, the lowest level of its four-tier travel advisory system.
The fake report had claimed that the US State Department had escalated its advisory due to a “significant deterioration in the security environment”, citing a surge in violent crime, disruptions to critical services, and limited access to emergency medical care.
The message, which bore formatting similar to official US government notices and claimed to have come from the US Embassy in Bridgetown, was widely circulated on social media and private messaging apps such as WhatsApp.
It claimed that armed robberies, home invasions, and organised criminal activity were targeting foreigners, and urged American citizens to consider leaving Barbados by commercial means if safe to do so.
The fake post made further unsubstantiated claims that “critical services” in Barbados were failing, that the healthcare system was under strain due to “ongoing labour actions”, and that tourists were being directly targeted by criminal groups.
Symmonds dismissed those claims as malicious and harmful.
“We are obviously going through a difficult period of time and I think the prime minister has indicated that to come out of it successfully, we as Barbadians need to pull together and work together to overcome this challenge,” he said.
“But it is deeply unhelpful when people will go to the extreme of peddling false rumours. This can only be a curious interpretation of Barbadians. But I want to give the assurance that there is no such travel advisory having been issued by the United States of America.”
The US Embassy advised that official updates on consular matters are only issued through trusted platforms, including the Smart Traveler Enrollment Programme (STEP), which allows Americans to register their travel for real-time alerts and assistance during emergencies.
While the origin of the false message remains unknown, both US and Barbadian authorities have urged the public to avoid spreading unauthenticated information and to verify updates through official channels.
The legitimate Level 1 advisory, last updated in August 2024, recommends that travellers take standard precautions when visiting Barbados and does not flag any specific threats to personal safety or national infrastructure.
Barbados continues to welcome thousands of visitors from the United States, which this year overtook the United Kingdom as the island’s leading tourism source market.
In a statement thanking the US Embassy for its swift response to the false advisory, the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. (BTMI) urged travellers to rely only on official government sources when seeking updates about their destinations.
“Unverified information can lead to unnecessary concern and confusion,” it said. “Barbados remains open, welcoming, and committed to providing a safe and enjoyable experience for all visitors.”
Just last week, the government launched a public reporting initiative in response to another viral fake message—an AI-generated video falsely claiming Prime Minister Mia Mottley was leading a Caribbean uprising against US President Donald Trump and had banned the American leader from Barbados.
The video’s circulation prompted the creation of a special email address, reportfakenews@barbados.gov.bb, where citizens can report suspected or known cases of disinformation.
The post Government, US Embassy, BTMI respond to false travel advisory appeared first on Barbados Today.