Yahyā ibn Ayyūb narrated to us: Ismāʿīl ibn Jaʿfar narrated to us: al-ʿAlāʾ ibn ʿAbd al-Rahmān informed me, from his father, from Abū Hurayra, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet ﷺ said, “Do you know what backbiting is?” They replied, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said, “It is to mention your brother in a way that he dislikes.” He was asked, “What if what I say about my brother is true?” He replied, “If what you say is true, you have backbitten him; and if it is not true, you have slandered him.”