Earthquake refers to the sudden and violent shaking of the ground, often caused by movements within the Earth's crust or volcanic activity. These natural events can range in intensity from minor tremors that go unnoticed to devastating quakes that cause significant damage and loss of life.

Earthquakes are measured using the Richter scale, which quantifies the energy released, and the Mercalli intensity scale, which assesses the effects on people, buildings, and the Earth's surface. Earthquakes are most common along tectonic plate boundaries, where plates are either colliding, pulling apart, or sliding past each other.

They can trigger secondary disasters such as tsunamis, landslides, and fires, making them among the most destructive natural phenomena.

In February 2023, BOOM investigated viral videos circulating on social media that were claimed to show the recent earthquake in Tajikistan.

BOOM found that both videos were unrelated and did not depict visuals of the earthquake that occurred in Tajikistan on February 23. The videos were actually from previous earthquakes in Japan and Nepal and were misleadingly shared as recent footage from Tajikistan.