Facebook. A social media platform which in September 2023 the EU announced had the second highest ratio of disinformation posts of all large social media platforms, as reported by The Guardian. Only X ex Twitter is worse. Facebook is rated Caution as a result. In January 2025 Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg vowed in a video message to get rid of fact checkers, starting with the United States. He admitted filters would "catch less bad stuff".
Zuckerberg said fact checking and content moderation got to the point that it "destroyed trust" in the platform.
Well, duh. The fact checking showed just how untrustworthy so much of the information on Facebook is. But what Mark Zuckerberg is doing about it – removing the fact checking – is taking specific targeted action to deliberately hide how untrustworthy much of the information on Facebook is. This is willful deception. Mark Zuckerberg is deliberately making Facebook a platform where false claims, misinformation, disinformation, and conspiracy theories are widely spread without hindrance. This is harmful to Facebook users. Rating updated from Caution to Danger.
Facer-Wood, Michelle.
Makes and sells colloidal silver, and recommends its use internally. She makes unproven therapeutic claims for colloidal silver that would be illegal in the USA and Australia, while colloidal silver itself is illegal in Canada.
Fairway Resolution Limited. Company which is said to operate (but does not own) Telecommunications Dispute Resolution Limited, the company which runs the Telecommunications Dispute Resolution Service (TDR). Referred to as Fair Way Resolution Limited by the TDR. This is the company which handles complaints about the TDR. Fairway Resolution Limited is 100% owned by Fairway Resolution Holdings Limited, which is 100% owned by Fairway Employee Trust Limited, which itself is 100% owned by Fairway Resolution Holdings Limited. This circular ownership arrangement is very unusual. Fairway Resolution Limited has been seen to take no resolving action regarding complaints about it endorsing false statements and lies. Fairway Resolution Limited is rated Caution for deception, its marked disinterest in truth, and a very unusual ownership arrangement.
False
Revival Movement.
The False Revival Movement arguably originated (in recent times, at least)
with Rodney Howard-Browne, and most recently was seen with Todd
Bentley in Lakeland, Florida. Also (or parts thereof) known as Holy
Laughter Movement, Toronto Blessing or Toronto
Movement, Pensacola Outpouring and the latest version Drunken
Revival Movement. In New Zealand the False Revival Movement is supported
by Jack and Gaye Stradwick and formerly by Rob DeLuca. Chief
proponents overseas include:
Matthew 24:24 says "For false Christs and false prophets will appear
and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect – if that were
possible." And 1 John 4:1 says "Dear friends, do not believe
every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because
many false prophets have gone out into the world." 1 Thessalonians
5:21-22 says "Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind
of evil." Matthew 7:15-23 is another strong warning:
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s
clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize
them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise
every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree
cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that
does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their
fruit you will recognize them.
"Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’
will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father
who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we
not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many
miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away
from me, you evildoers!’ "
Lee Grady, editor of Charisma magazine, in "LIFE AFTER LAKELAND:
Sorting Out the Confusion" writes about the false Lakeland revival led
by Todd Bentley (with emphasis added):
Why did so many people flock to Lakeland from around the world
to rally behind an evangelist who had serious credibility issues from the
beginning?
To put it bluntly, we're just plain gullible.
From the first week of the Lakeland revival, many discerning
Christians raised questions about Bentley's beliefs and practices. They felt
uneasy when he said he talked to an angel in his hotel room. They sensed something
amiss when he wore a T-shirt with a skeleton on it. They wondered why a man
of God would cover himself with tattoos. They were horrified when they heard
him describe how he tackled a man and knocked his tooth out during prayer.
But among those who jumped on the Lakeland bandwagon, discernment
was discouraged. They were expected to swallow and follow. The message
was clear: "This is God. Don't question." So before we could all
say, "Sheeka Boomba" (as Bentley often prayed from his pulpit), many
people went home, prayed for people and shoved them to the floor with reckless
abandon, Bentley-style.
I blame this lack of discernment, partly, on raw zeal for God.
We're spiritual hungry – which can be a good thing. But sometimes, hungry people
will eat anything.
Many of us would rather watch a noisy demonstration of miracles,
signs and wonders than have a quiet Bible study. Yet we are faced today with
the sad reality that our untempered zeal is a sign of immaturity. Our adolescent
craving for the wild and crazy makes us do stupid things. It's way past time
for us to grow up.
FWIW Lee Grady has apparently learned from the Todd Bentley saga. On 27 October
2009 he
wrote
about John Crowder, saying "Let's put the childish things behind
us. It's time for us to grow up and sober up." (More of his article
is quoted in the Drunken Revival Movement
listing.)
Many of the manifestations seen in the False Revival Movement are also seen
as Kundalini manifestations. Andrew
Strom warns against the False Revival Movement and its practices and has
recently released Part 3 of his Kundalini video series.
Falun Gong/Falun Dafa.New Age group involving meditation.
Founded by Li Hongzhi in China, where according
to this
NZ Herald article it has been banned since 1999. The group
came to world media attention in that year due to Chinese practitioners
being brutalised by the government, who called it dangerous and subversive.
Still small in New Zealand, but supposed to have up to 70 million practitioners
in China, making it (according to practitioners) larger than the Communist
Party, and hence the reason (practitioners claim) for the persecution.
Falun Gong has two main texts, Falun
Gong and Zhuan Falun.
Family Federation (for World Peace (and Unification)).
A front group for the dangerous Moonie mind
control cult. They pay for a show (Family Federation Report) on Auckland's
Triangle TV.
Family Party, The. A political party
formed for the 2008 general election from members of the disbanded Destiny
NZ (political party). Former leader of Destiny NZ Richard
Lewis is leader, and Paul Adams, a former United Future MP is deputy
leader. The party only got 0.35% of the nationwide vote and failed to
get any seats, and has been quiet (inactive?) since the election.
Family Radio. An
evangelical Christian radio station based in Oakland, California, USA.
Founded by Harold Camping. In March 2011
they posted
billboards around New Zealand advertising judgment
day would fall on 21 May 2011. It wasn't a joke or an advertising stunt;
they really did believe that judgement day would be on that day, based
on the teachings of Harold Camping.
Family Systems Research Group.
Commonly abbreviated as FSRG. This is the name that the cult Gentle Wind
Project now operates under. See Gentle Wind Project
for more information.
FANZA.
Freezone Association of Australia & New Zealand. A breakaway group
from Scientology, which feels that "since
the death of the founder of the movement, the Church of Scientology has
strayed from the original philosophy and purpose of the group."
Believed to be very small in New Zealand, it is led by Leon (Leo) Swart,
who left Scientology in 1983. He writes:
Back in 1982/83 there was a worldwide schism in the Church
of Scientology. A new leadership (headed by David Miscavidge) forceably
took control of the C of S. Many people who did not like the direction
it was then taking broke away from the C of S and were promptly expelled
and declared to be "Suppressive Persons".
However, many of these still followed the tenets and practices
of Scientology very closely (in its original form) and organized themselves
into a loose world-wide fellowship generally called the "Freezone".
We continue to practice the applied religious philosophy
that is Scientology, disregarding the rantings of the "offical"
Church of Scientology.
In New Zealand the Freezone has its main advocate in myself
(living in Hamilton) and we have supporters all over the place.
Farag, J D. J D Farag is a YouTube conspiracy theorist end-times preacher – and probable false prophet – with followers in New Zealand. He is rated Danger because of (but not limited to) the very real risk that people who listen to his teaching will be convinced to not get vaccinated against COVID-19, thereby posing a risk of death for themselves and the people they come into contact with. See conspiracy theory in the Glossary for more information.
Feldenkrais Method, The. In effect a subset of Somatic Education, it
is marketed in New Zealand under such names as Move To Improve. Basic
idea seems to be that much body pain and physical restrictions (lack of
movement) aren't caused by old age but by learned habits and repetitive
poor use of the body. OK so far. However the Feldenkrais Method, like
many other alternative physical therapies, claims that by its application
all sorts of things can be fixed, stress reduced, etc. There is no credible
research evidence to substantiate such claims, and so is considered an
alternative treatment. Although it is included in a prominant NZ online
New Age resource listing, it is not believed to be particularly New
Age itself, but some of its practitioners do have strong links to
the New Age. C G Maher (School of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health Sciences,
The University of Sydney, NSW, Australia) had this to say in Effective
Physical Treatment of Chronic Lower Back Pain (2004):
Physical treatments, such as acupuncture, backschool,
hydrotherapy, lumbar supports, magnets, TENS, traction, ultrasound, Pilates
therapy, Feldenkrais therapy, Alexander technique, and craniosacral therapy
are either of unknown value or ineffective and so should not be considered.
Felkin, (Dr) Robert William. Dr Robert
William Felkin founded Whare Ra.
Ferriss, Mike.
Mike Ferriss is the head PR person of the Scientology
cult in New Zealand, with the official title of "Secretary".
As of 2005 he has been a Scientologist for about 24 years and a Scientology
employee for about 19 years. We have reason to believe that in that
time Mr Ferriss has gained a good working knowledge of tresspass laws.
He claims to have completed at least some of the higher levels, including
OT III, and we've been told he completed OT IV in 1994 or earlier. However,
he also categorically denies knowing anything about Xenu.
OT III clearly explains who Xenu is – see the Xenu
listing for a good summary. Because of this, the New Zealand Cult List
believes Mr Ferriss is lying about one of these claims (either about
having completed OT III or not knowing about Xenu). In his ongoing attempts
to censor this information, Mike Ferriss has tried one of the standard
$cientology tactic$ – accusing the editor of hiding something. (Mr Ferriss
is "damn
sure of it", too!)
It seems Mr Ferriss is either very paranoid or is just not very subtle
when using his (at that point) 24 years of Scientology training. (Mind
you, 24 years of Scientology training could make anyone paranoid. People
have allegedly
killed
themselves after far fewer years in Scientology. And, sadly, been
killed
by Scientology.) The question must be raised – why is Mike
Ferriss hiding his knowledge of Xenu? All the information has been public
for years. Is there any point to hiding it apart from trying to get more money
out of the ignorant?
Mr Ferriss' activities in October 2005 included trying to shut
down the satirical ScienTOMogy
site. Ironically, his activity directly resulted in our own site
getting record numbers of visitors.
Ficino School.
A school for primary and intermediate aged children started in 1997 by
the New Age cult School
of Philosophy. It claims to provide a "spiritually based"
education and gives lip service to Christianity, but sadly the non-academic
teaching (which includes meditation for older students) primarily comes from the Hindu-based teachings of the School
of Philosophy. According to their web site, "Sanscrit [sic]
is taught from an early age ... and [has] a rich culture behind it."
What that doesn't make clear is that the "rich culture" is the
School of Philosophy's Vedic (Hindu) scriptures, which are in Sanskrit.
The school's name comes from Renaissance translator and astrologer Marsilio
Ficino, although the Ficino School prefers to call him a philosopher.
The Danger rating is partly because of the deception regarding
their links and teachings, and partly because of the danger posed by the
School of Philosophy's teachings.
Fight Against Conspiracy Theories. In their own words, "An informal group of New Zealand academics, health workers and professionals who want to stop the spread of dangerous misinformation about Covid-19 and vaccines."
Final Warning Ministries. Apparently a New Zealand front group for Seventh-day Adventist teachings, and probably not connected with the similarly named God's Final Warning Ministries in Texas, USA. While the group claims to be non-denominational, they clearly promote the SDA Sabbath teachings, which amount to a form of legalism. For this legalism and the lack of disclosure of their denominational bias while claiming no affiliation, they have been rated Caution.
Firstlight, Firstlight Broadcasting Network. A TV channel in New Zealand (Freeview channel 26) run by Seventh-Day Adventists. Many of the programmes on the channel reflect the dodgy theology of Ellen G White, earning at least a Caution rating, and the channel also sometimes screens false scientific-related material such as talks by Ross Patterson. Care should be taken when listening to such teaching. Firstlight Broadcasting Network claims they are a sister organisation to HCBN, a ministry also run by Seventh-Day Adventists.
Flurry, Gerald Ray.
Gerald R Flurry is the leader of the cult Philadelphia
Church of God. Born 12 April 1935 in Oklahoma City in the USA.
Foundation for Higher Learning. Cult founded in around 1982 by Hungarian-born Imre Vallyon, based at Waitetuna Retreat Centre near Raglan, although the group runs spiritual retreats around the world (New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Germany, Hungary). Described in this Stuff article as "a patchwork of east and western philosophies: Yoga, Zen, Sufism, Catholicism, Mysticism and more" – the "more" including such things as tarot and Kabbalah. Worldwide, the Foundation for Higher Learning "has hundreds of members in New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Germany and Hungary" according to a Dutch report from 2020, which goes on to say "In recent years, the American and Swiss groups have dropped out, and now also the Dutch branch." The article explains the Dutch branch of Foundation for Higher Learning changed its name to Circle for Meditation and Reflection in November 2019. About 20 members disagreed with the decision to leave and joined FHL branches in other countries, leaving 50 members in the new/reformed Dutch organisation, the board of which accused Imre Vallyon of “financial missteps” regarding apparent misuse of the group’s tax status. More information about the New Zealand centre can be found in this Sunday Star Times article, which explains that details of the convictions were withheld from the members and explained away as lies and exaggerations when they were revealed – much like the convictions of Gloriavale founder Neville Cooper (Hopeful Christian). The article quotes Peter (not his real name), a former member from Europe, talking about the concealing of the conviction, in the process giving several strong lines of evidence the group is a cult.
“Had I known this from the start, I would not have joined this group. My feelings started to grow stronger by seeing that Imre was being worshipped like some kind of god by many, but not all, members of the group. I highly resented that practice.” Vallyon’s followers seem ‘brainwashed’ to Peter. “Group members are so convinced that he is an enlightened being that they will not accept the real truth.
“They just all close their eyes.”
Foundation for Self Knowledge Inc.New Age, Hindu-based
group based in Hillsborough, Auckland. Runs lecture series, meditation
classes, spiritual camps. Main spokesperson/teacher is Ananya
Chaitanya.
Foundation of Spiritualist Mediums.Occult group in Auckland.
Freedom Alliance, The. The Freedom Alliance is a conspiracy group which produces and distributes conspiracy theories and propaganda. Led by conspiracy theorist Billy Te Kahika. (The truth is masks can greatly reduce the spread of airborne particles, and can greatly reduce the spread of COVID-19. Be responsible, wear masks on public transport. It's not hard.) Rated Danger because their views could directly lead to deaths of New Zealanders.
Freedom and Rights Coalition. A group founded by Brian Tamaki and others to spread their anti-lockdown and anti-masking views. Rated Danger because their views could directly lead to deaths of New Zealanders.
Freemasons.
Cult – of sorts. Also known as the Masonic Lodge, sometimes called the
Masons. Highly secretive male-only group (whose secrets are widely distributed
on the Internet). Christianity and Freemasonry are not compatible.
There are two main branches or denominations – the York Rite (which has
10 degrees, or levels) and the Scottish Rite (which has 33 degrees). Most
members never go beyond the first few levels (known as the Blue Lodge),
and may not even know there are so many levels. See the FreemasonryCloseup for more information.
Friends United Meeting.
Christian sect/denomination. A denomination of Evangelical
Friends – one of the three main Religious
Society of Friends (Quaker) branches – that claims about 50% of Quakers
worldwide, and is apparently one of the few Quaker denominations to belong
to the Word Council of Churches. (Strangely, the Conservative
Friends Quaker branch claims FUM has 80%-90% of all Quakers.) Unknown
if any members are in New Zealand, where most Quakers are in the Liberal
Friends branch. The statement by the Friends United Meeting includes
the beliefs in: true religion as a personal encounter with God, rather
than ritual and ceremony; individual worth before God; worship as an act
of seeking; the virtues of moral purity, integrity, honesty, simplicity
and humility; Christian love and goodness; concern for the suffering and
unfortunate; continuing revelation through the Holy Spirit.
Friendship Force. From their web site:
The Friendship Force is an international, non-political, non-sectarian, and non-profit organization. The sole aim of the Friendship Force is to foster peace and understanding throughout the world by means of personal contacts and shared experiences achieved through a programme of home hosting. The Friendship Force was founded in the USA in 1977 by Wayne Smith under the auspices of President Jimmy Carter and is coordinated from the international headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. There are over 300 clubs in over 60 countries throughout the world. The Friendship Force is not a travel club although the core activity is travelling in groups, to stay with like-minded people in other countries (a cultural exchange). The first priority is to develop friendships and through this to generate understanding across cultural boundaries.
Fuelmate.
Scam, only good for extracting money from the wallets of the gullible.
It's a competing product to Fuelstar.
Fuelstar.
Scam, only good for extracting money from the wallets of the gullible. Fuelstar
is a company run by Ian Cornelius that makes a tin-based "fuel combustion
catalyst" that will give a guaranteed 12% fuel saving. It does not work.
Even the best of their test reports only show that engines are more efficient
when maintained well, such as the test by the dodgy California Environment Engineering
(which has given apparently favourable results for many bogus fuel-saving products,
but tries to gloss over the vehicle maintenance done at the same time as the
device is installed). The only reason Fuelstar is not given a Danger
rating is because it probably won't do you any physical harm. Although
the various tin compounds likely produced by combustion are toxic the concentration
is probably too low to be detected or they are insignificant compared to all the other
toxic chemicals in vehicle exhaust anyway. A competing version available in
Australia and New Zealand is called Fuelmate, while other similar products are called Broquet and Carbonflo.
There are a few general ways that you can easily tell that Fuelstar, Fuelmate
and other similar products are scams:
No scientific explanation – no reason is given (or exists) for how
it works.
Pseudoscience explanations – little or no genuine scientific support
for the apparently scientific claims that are made. Examples are dodgy
tests and scientific-sounding gobbledygook. (Note that pseudoscience gobbledygook
can be hard to recognise for those without a scientific background.)
Defies good science – there are often easy to find scientific reasons
why it doesn't work. For example:
Too little active ingredient consumed to have a chemically significant effect. (For Fuelstar, tin is the
claimed active ingredient.)
Defies common sense – there are often easy to find common sense reasons
why it won't work as well as claimed. For example:
Too good to be true – claims to work well or equally well on
any engine size or type, whether petrol, diesel, or LPG, in any application
(eg, large diesel truck or small petrol generator).
Not used by those who would gain the most if it were true – the
product claims benefits that industry would snap up if the benefits were
real. (No car manufacturer includes a tin combustion catalyst in their vehicle fuel
lines.)
Excessive cost – retail cost completely disproportionate to the cost
of materials. (In the case of Fuelstar there's perhaps $2.70 to $5.40 of tin
in them but they sell for hundreds of dollars.)
Marketed mainly by anecdotal evidence – the "it worked for me" personal accounts without rigorous objective testing or measurement or control of variables.
Some of these points are investigated in this Fuelstar
Scam article.
Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International.
Their mission statement: "To reach men in all nations for Jesus
Christ. To call men back to God. To help believers to be baptized in the
Holy Spirit and to grow spiritually. To train and equip men to fulfill
the Great Commission. To provide an opportunity for Christian fellowship.
To bring greater unity among all people in the body of Christ."
Started in California in 1951 as Full Gospel Men's Voice. Apparently at
one point they publicly endorsed the false prophet William
Branham. Now operates in 132 countries. They have an international
website which may not work very well with some browsers.
Full Gospel Mission Fellowship.
Cult, now disbanded. Nicknamed God's Squad, based at Camp
David near Christchurch, finally wound up in 2002. They made a name
for themselves in the 1970s when it was discovered they were stockpiling
guns and ammunition. Led by Douglas Metcalf
(died in 1989) who members believed was Jesus Christ.
Fusion. Former Auckland church in New Lynn pastored by Jack and Gaye
Stradwick, now (as of the middle of 2013) reimaged as Origin and relocated to Onehunga.
A social media platform which in September 2023 the EU announced had the second highest ratio of disinformation posts of all large social media platforms, as 
Company which is said to operate (but does not own) 
The False Revival Movement arguably originated (in recent times, at least)
with Rodney Howard-Browne, and most recently was seen with 
From their web site:
Their mission statement: "To reach men in all nations for Jesus
Christ. To call men back to God. To help believers to be baptized in the
Holy Spirit and to grow spiritually. To train and equip men to fulfill
the Great Commission. To provide an opportunity for Christian fellowship.
To bring greater unity among all people in the body of Christ."
Started in California in 1951 as Full Gospel Men's Voice. Apparently at
one point they publicly endorsed the false prophet 