If you're thinking about searching for 'Avril Lavigne' on Google - then you might want to reconsinder. Things could be getting very complicated for you if you put her name into a search engine, because she was once named the 'most dangerous celebrity on the internet'.
The Candian star is celebrating her 38th birthday today, leading to a renewed interest in the Sk8er Boi singer, but people have been warned they need to be careful. And not just about those bizarre rumours that she has been dead for 19 years and replaced by a clone - which is very much a conspiracy theory.
Sadly, doing a simple Google search for Avril Lavigne's name could land you in serious trouble - as it might be bad news for your computer.
Back in 2017, Cybersecurity firm McAfee did a study - and their results showed that she is the celebrity most likely to direct internet users to websites that carry viruses or malware.
The study, which was in its 11th year, highlighted the dangers of clicking on suspicious links when searching for celebrity-focused content.
Web users researching Avril have a 14.5 per cent chance of landing on a web page with malware, the firm's data revealed.
If you're tempted to search for free MP3s alongside the singer's name, you have a 22 per cent chance of clicking on a page with a virus.
Avril was the first female musician to ever take the No. 1 spot - and was in decent company on the top 10 list.
McAfee also outlined nine other celebrities who could potentially be harmful and turn out malware when you search for them.
- Bruno Mars
- Carly Rae Jepsen
- Zayn Malik
- Celine Dion
- Calvin Harris
- Justin Bieber
- Sean 'Diddy' Combs
- Katy Perry
- Beyoncé
So why Avril? McAfee had a few suggestions for why she scored so high on the list.
These included interest after she said she was working on a new album, a feature story on her by E! Online and the internet conspiracy that she died and has been replaced by a clone.
Much like other conspiracy theories of a similar nature regarding Paul McCartney and Eminem, the ridiculous rumours first began on Twitter before lowing up.
One user reignited the bonfire by claiming the singer had been dead for a while, and thousands of others lost themselves down the rabbit hole.
The tin foil hat wearers inists the singer died in 2003 and was replaced by lookalike actress Melissa Vandella.
There are countless accounts online of people analysing pictures of Avril before and after 2003, with many believing her facial features are too different to be the same person.
But it is of course all absolute nonsense.
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