Meaning:

“软” means “soft,” and “谣言” means “rumor.” Coined by Chinese netizens, this term refers to rumors closely related to everyday life that are often spread via social media among people who know each other. The rumors, often concerning health warnings or saftey warnings, are spread by people who actually care about their friends and relatives, but turn out to be fake.

Example:

A: 咱们山东人爱吃大蒜，听说大蒜也不能多吃，吃多了有致癌隐患。我给你转个帖子。

Zánmen shāndōngrén ài chī dàsuàn，tīngshuō dàsuàn yě bù néng duō chī，chī duō le yǒu zhìái yǐnhuàn。Wǒ gěi nǐ zhuǎn ge tiězi。

We Shandong natives love garlic, but I just heard that eating too much garlic can pose cancer risks. Let me send you this article.

B: 这又是哪里听来的软谣言？下次别转发这样的内容了。

zhè yòu shì nǎlǐ tīng lái de ruǎnyáoyán？Xiàcì bié zhuǎnfā zhèyàng de nèiróng le。

Where did you hear that rumor? Please don’t forward similar stuff next time.