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Hoaxes and Scams in Facebook

Topic difficulty: Beginners

Examples of Facebook Scams and Hoaxes

Facebook has, hands down, become one of the most widely used Online networking to date.  From teens to parents wanting to find relatives to grandmas playing the odd game of Farmville, it caters for a variety of personalities and social needs.  With its popularity rising, no wonder there is even more reason to be wary of the hoaxes and scams that lurk within its pages.

The ease of accessibility and do-it-yourself-ness has opened a door to the Internet like never before.

Uploading a photo album?  Click.
Sending a message or share a link?  Simple: click!
Give away your password to an online hacker: click!

As the masses find empowerment in accessibility, many find themselves unawares and falling prey to scams and hoaxes without even knowing it.

Phishing

Pronounced “fishing”, it is a technique used by scammers and fraudsters to trick you into revealing security information such as a passwords, usernames and financial information.  This is usually achieved by posing as a legitimate company or log in screen.  It directs users to enter details at a fake website that looks and feels similar to the real thing.

How can you tell whether you’re being phished?  Here are some things to look out for:

Fake web addresses

The last part of a web address before the .com, .net, .com.au, etc is called its "domain".  In http://help.facebook.com, "facebook" is its domain.  "help" is its sub-domain.  If a website's domain is anything other than its name, it might be something to be suspicious about.

In the example below, the scammers have used the words FAKEURL before the .com as the domain, but used facebook as its sub-domain to trick us into thinking the website is real:

Facebook Phishing

Normally, the fake address is something less conspicuous and you need to keep your wits about you.  Here are some more examples of fake website addresses that are harder to pick out:

http://facebook.login.com
http://login.facebooklogin.com
http://facebook.cu.com

In all these instances, we've highlighted the domain for you to show that they aren't a part of the facebook website.

How do you end up at these pages?

There are many ways scammers lure you to fake websites.  In particular, watch out for "Please Update Login Details" or "Your Account Will Be Deleted" messages and emails.  If you receive something like this as an email, DO NOT RESPOND.  In doing so, you're letting the scammers know your email address is valid and you may be added to spam lists.

What can I do to fight phishing?

Change your password!  A good way to fight phishing is to change the password to your accounts about once a month.  If by chance you have been subject to such a scam, it lessens the potential damage because they aren’t able to log in once you’ve changed your details.

Update your browser.  Keeping your Internet browser (the program you’re using right now to read this page) up to date is absolutely essential in fighting Internet scams.  They can often detect fake pages and provide you with warnings.  Please visit our article about Internet browsers to find out more.

For more information about Facebook phishing please visit this link: http://blog.facebook.com/blog.php?post=81474932130


Hoaxes and scams

Do any of these messages sound familar?

"Win a new laptop just by forwarding this email!"

"Become a Facebook GOLD member"

"Upgrade your account by replying to this thread"


Although most hoaxes are benign in terms of security concerns, they are often designed to direct a lot of internet "traffic" to their pages or clog up email boxes.  

Scammers often address the wants of Facebook users through groups that provide fake resolutions in an attempt to build large followings.  These claims are fake and may be used to mine for information, redirect to a phishing or advertising website or merely for the thrill of spreading a hoax.  There are literally thousands of these types of groups around wanting your collective attention.  Examples of such hoaxes include:

  • "Facebook Gold Upgrade"
  • "Change Your Facebook Profile Color"
  • "Get the Dislike Button”
  • "We’re Against The $4.99 A Month Charge for Facebook from June 30th 2010"
  • "Profile Spy - Find out who sees your profile!"


Much of their promises are technically impossible, but many users aren’t aware of this.  For instance, some Facebook groups claim that once a certain percentage of their friends join a group, they receive a prize.  Groups are unable to mine for this kind of data.  Facebook will also never charge you money for its use.  It is sustained by an advertising model that doesn’t require any other form of income generation.

Naturally some of these groups sound legitimate and it takes some common sense and thought to see through these claims.  Google is your friend when it comes to checking if these are scams.  Simply type part of a sentence or the name of a group or email in a Google search box to find out if other people have made complaints.  Be especially weary if the message claims to have been pre-tested to not be scam free!



There are risks of being caught out online, with a bit of knowledge of what is out there we can avoid common traps.  Help others be aware.  Send them a message with a link to this article if you've received a request or email asking to join something you think may be a scam.

Remember that scams and phishing attempts can happen on any website or email.  Maintaining a collective awareness is essential in our understanding and enjoyment of the online community.

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