A photo of the inside of a bus in Oslo is going viral after members of an anti-immigrant Facebook group mistook the empty seats for women wearing burqas.

Members of the 'Fedrelandet viktigst' ['Fatherland first'] group reacted with horror in comments beneath the posted photo.

"This looks really scary. You can't tell who's underneath. Could be terrorists," wrote one, agreeing with other Facebook users who called the image "terrifying".

Others called for 'them' to be deported while another said that things were deteriorating faster than they had imagined.  “I thought it would be like this in the year 2050, but it is happening now," they wrote in alarm. 

But a closer look at the photo immediately reveals that many users unwittingly let their prejudices get ahead of them - the image shows nothing more than empty bus seats. 

The prank post was the work of journalist Johan Slåttavik, who shared the image together with screenshots of some reactions along with the caption: "“What happens when a photo of some empty bus seats is posted to a disgusting Facebook group, and nearly everyone thinks they see a bunch of burqas?”

The man responsible for the post shared the image together with many outraged reactions. Photo: Facebook

Mr Slåttavik told local media he was shocked by the amount of anger spouted on the Facebook group. So much hatred against empty bus seats certainly shows that prejudice wins out over wisdom.” 

"So much hatred against empty bus seats certainly shows that prejudice wins out over wisdom," he said.  

Norwegian politicians are expected to pass a law banning burqas from kindergartens, schools and universities within a matter of months. 

If the law is passed, Norway would join France, Holland, Belgium, Bulgaria and the German state of Bavaria in imposing restrictions on wearing full-face veils in public places.