A 10-second video clip showing a massive eruption of Mount Anak Krakatau with huge bursts of fire at night suddenly went viral across various social media platforms. The video caused public anxiety, especially amid the volcano's elevated volcanic activity status to Level III (Alert).
However, authorities confirmed that the visuals do not reflect the current condition of Mount Anak Krakatau. Andi Suwardi, an observer at the Hargo Pancuran Village Observation Post, emphasized that the widely circulating video is inaccurate and does not represent current eruptive activity.
According to monitoring data, the last eruption was recorded on Friday (3/7/2026) afternoon around 15:00 WIB. Since then, until Saturday afternoon, no significant follow-up eruptive activity has been observed. Nevertheless, Mount Anak Krakatau's status remains at Level III (Alert), making a 3-kilometer safety radius from the crater center mandatory for both fishermen and tourists.
Responding to the spread of false information, Head of Public Relations for the Lampung Regional Police, Senior Commissioner Yuni Iswandari Yuyun, urged the public to be wiser when filtering disaster-related information. She emphasized the importance of verifying all news through official channels such as the Geological Agency, BMKG, or relevant institutions to prevent unnecessary public panic.
For context, the status upgrade to Level III was set on Thursday (2/7/2026) following increased volcanic activity characterized by a surge in shallow earthquakes, ground deformation of the volcano, and consistently rising emissions of sulfur dioxide gas.
