Screenshots of a fake tweet suggesting that all schools, including polytechnics and universities, will be closed on Monday because of the coronavirus outbreak have been circulating on social media.

This is not true, the Government said on its Gov.sg website yesterday.

Broadcaster CNA added that the image appears to have been a doctored screengrab of a tweet it sent out yesterday afternoon.

One tell-tale sign that the image is fake is that it was watermarked with an outdated logo, CNA said.

Following the stepping up of the coronavirus outbreak alert level to code orange, the Education Ministry said yesterday that it will suspend all external school activities and inter-school activities until the end of the March school holidays.

These activities include the National School Games as well as learning journeys.

"These additional measures are intended to help schools minimise exposure of students to the public and avoid mixing of students across schools," MOE said in a statement.

Singapore had moved to code orange during the H1N1 influenza outbreak in 2009. The coding system was set up after the 2003 outbreak of Sars, or severe acute respiratory syndrome.

Under the Disease Outbreak Response System Condition (Dorscon), orange means the outbreak is deemed to have moderate to high public health impact.

It acknowledges there is local spread, with a possibility the disease may spread even more widely across the country. It also indicates that the disease is being contained.