As we warned about this weekend, Facebook Chat is being used heavily by scammers right now to prey on unsuspecting users. This method of attack can be very successful. The scams are engineered so that it appears the person is receiving legitimate chat messages from a Facebook friend. This can make someone more trusting and ultimately click on the scam link, which of course is the scammer’s main goal. Always be suspicious of any links you receive via Facebook Chat. Talk with your friend and ask them questions only they would know. This will let you know that you are chatting with the real person and not a bot or hacker. Here are a few chat scams to be aware of:
- “Hey” – [the user responds] – “Wanna Laugh?” [then a scam link is sent via chat]
- “hey is this your ex?? lol”
- “omg you look so cute.”
Free Facebook Credit scams, Profile Viewers, See Who Blocked You and free Facebook items are still viral scams at the moment. (viral meaning spreading quickly from user to user and not necessarily that the scam contains a virus.)Always use common sense and be careful what you click!
Below is a listing of the most active Facebook threats that you and your friends should be aware of. Be sure to “share” it with your friends!
Red Arrow crashes during air show Video
Get A Free $100 Pizzahut Gift Card!
Crazy Girl Video – Facebook Scams
Get A Free Tickets to Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 2!
[Phishing Alert] Bogus Alert from Facebook Security
Look what happens when this man confronts a London rioter
Fake Facebook Page Events offering Free Merchandise
WTF – What are you doing in this Video?? (There is always some variant of this scam active on Facebook!)
Shocking and sensational headlines are the bread and butter of Facebook scammers. Many of these scams have been around for weeks, and are still going strong. The scammers are also using crazy and funky characters to try to bypass Facebook’s scam filters, for example:
ÍNSÂNÈ: BRÖTHÉR râpës ând kîlls hís sìstèr – Shõckíng VÏDÉÕ
If you see a Wall post on Facebook that looks like that, then 99% of the time it will be scam. Don’t click on those links!
If you haven’t given Safego a try, then now would be a great time to check it out. It is an internal Facebook application developed by our partner, BitDefender. It scans your newsfeed, among other things, and can warn you of malicious links.
Please share this report to help educate your friends about these threats. If people don’t let their curiosity get the best of them and take some basic security precautions, then these scams will dissipate much quicker.
If you would like to stay informed on the latest Facebook threats, then join our community of over 75,000 members on Facebook.
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