Scams in the News (9/21/2009) – Top 5 Facebook Scams

Top 5 Facebook Scams

1. Friendly 419 – 419 scams have made their way to Facebook, too, of course. This is the type of scam we reported before where the scammer hijacks a Facebook account, then masquerades as the account holder to contact the friends and family and asks for emergency money to be sent overseas where they are detained or robbed. (1, 2)
2. Hidden fee apps – Leanne Saylor fell prey to scammers after taking an IQ quiz on the service. To receive her results, she was required to submit her cell phone number and wait for a text. When she didn’t receive anything, Saylor entered her phone number two more times. When she opened her next cell phone bill, she discovered three charges from the app, totaling a whopping $44.
3. Fake login pages – If you’ve opened a spam email, clicked on the fake Facebook login link, and typed in your email and password, you’ve just given the control of your account over to a hacker who will use your account to carry out scams listed here.
4. Malware links – The link may have come from your friend, but it doesn’t mean it’s safe. Your friend’s account has been compromised. These malwares can do lots of harm from stealing your credit card information to infecting your computer with a nasty virus.
5. Malware Facebook apps – Some Facebook apps themselves are malwares, so be careful.

SOURCE

Also in the news:

• A woman took part in an Internet banking scam in a bid to prop up her ailing business
• Some hardcore Cowboys fans were scammed out of a whole lot of money and left with no tickets
• Couple who once posted baby on Craigslist charged with fraud
• Tickets to see Oprah and a chance to win $1 million?
• Online plea for help to find little girl’s father nothing more than marketing scam