"[Social media users] must not make up rumors to cause trouble or for the purposes of grandstanding," it said. "We will continue to work with police and other departments to track down rumor-makers and those who deliberately spread rumors, working from public tip-offs and online investigations, and punish them according to law," the message said.
The warning came after Shanghai police denied an online report that the authorities had banned group-buying practices among locked-down residents, who have been complaining of food shortages due to a lack of takeout services and inadequate fresh supplies from the government.
