Commenting on the panic buying by Singaporeans after the Ministry of Health raised the Dorscon risk assessment level from Yellow to Orange, SMU Dean of Students and Professor of Sociology (Practice) Paulin Straughan said the images of empty shelves circulating on social media played a big part, and reiterated that while technology has helped to disseminate information a lot faster, it has similarly allowed misinformation to spread just as quickly. She added that panic-buying in Singapore might have been avoided if information disseminated by the authorities had been clearer, and noted that the definition of Dorscon Orange could have been explained better.