For most of us, the coronavirus was practically unheard of until the recent outbreak which infected thousands and killed hundreds of people.

When in dire need for more information, most of us turn to Google, but what if Google ended up steering us in the wrong direction?

According to a report by Business Insider, people who were trying to look for information on the coronavirus ended up being directed to sites about Corona beer instead.

Coronavirus VS Corona beer

Does it look like beer to you?
Just to be clear, coronavirus has got absolutely NOTHING to do with the Mexican beer.

The confusion between the beverage and virus was so prominent that Google Trends showed a rise in searches on 'beer virus' and 'corona beer virus'.

The 'beer virus' search term has reportedly surged more than 3,300 per cent globally, and was most popular in countries like Singapore, Qatar, Australia, St Helena and Latvia.


The 'corona beer virus' search term, on the other hand, rised 2,300 per cent and was most popular in St Helena, Singapore, Latvia, North Macedonia and Cambodia.


Thankfully, the case of mistaken identity did not negatively impact the stock price of Corona’s parent company:

So, why is the virus named coronavirus then?

Apparently, the world 'corona' means 'crown' in Latin, and when viewed under a microscope, the virus appears to have crown-like spikes.

People are so easily confused, kan? :P