There is a fake message offering to donate kidneys from a brain-dead couple circulating on social media.

A message on social media falsely claims that four kidneys are available for donation. It's illegal to advertise for the sale of organs online.

A message on social media falsely claims that four kidneys are available for donation. It's illegal to advertise for the sale of organs online.A viral social media post claims that four kidneys are available for donation. The post adds that the kidneys come from two people who were involved in a car accident and now been declared brain dead. Three contact numbers are also included in the message. However, this post has been circulating since 2017 and its claims are not true.

As a 2018 article from The Hindu stated, there has been a hoax message claiming: "victims of a car accident Sudheer and his wife have been declared brain dead by the doctor. Their family has decided to donate four kidneys for a humanitarian cause." The article further reports that the message has been circulated with multiple phone numbers. One of the phone numbers belongs to Dr. Sandeep Kumar Garg, a Meerut-based nephrologist.

Dr. Garg told The Hindu that "there are several versions of the message with my number in them. I don't know who has done this and have given a written complaint to the Medical College police station in Meerut, but they have not investigated the matter."

The article also mentions that National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) officials also asked Dr. Garg about the viral message and declared it a hoax.

According to the Human Organ Transplant Act 1994, advertising or publishing content related to organ donation is illegal. Those found guilty can be fined from 10 thousand to 20 thousand and imprisoned from 2 to 7 years.

On October 14, 2017, the Times of India reported that a similar post about kidney sales was circulating on social media. Kishore Phadke, a convener of Jeevasarthakathe, the cadaveric organ donation authority of Karnataka, filed a First Information Report (FIR) with the cyber police suspecting the involvement of racketeers. The article also mentioned that advertising organ sales is prohibited and considered a criminal offense.