Facebook is a highly popular social networking site. You can meet tons of people all around the world. Whether you are there to make friends, networking or dating it is the place to be besides Myspace. Just about anyone you know has a Facebook account, from your co-worker, family, friends and your children are logging in everyday. There are 3 billion messages pass through Facebook every single day. Facebook is a great resource for business owners to market their business.
There are 150 million of users from all over the world on this site every single day and that’s why you should be careful on who you communicate with. You cannot see who you are talking too, and you don’t know if they are approaching you with the truth in email exchanges. This is a perfect and wide open opportunity for scammers to take advantage of you. These criminals can pose as your friend and scam you out of anything they want.
Here are some scams for you to watch out for when it comes to communicating with strangers on Facebook.
Friend in Distress– This is when a scammer posing as your friend emails you and tells you that they have been in some kind of accident and need your help. They will ask you to send them money. They will give you any kind of story for you to believe them so that you can send those funds. One key to this scam that does not fit is when they request that you send the money overseas. If you come in contact with someone that has sent you an email like this, and it just does not sound right. Call your friend to make sure you don’t fall victim to this scam. The reason why they have your friend’s info to contact you on Facebook is that they have hack into your friend’s computer. Be careful!
Fishing Friend Scam– Is when you get an email sending you to another website to download software. When you download the software it releases viruses to your computer and allows the hacker to get into your computer and gather all of your information.
Viral Wall Past Scam– This is when you get an email and it’s has a virus in it which allows the hacker to get all of you and your friend’s info on your Facebook account and see everything you are typing when communicating with your contacts. These scammers can collect your bank account information and everything else.
So, when you are on Facebook beware of these suspicious emails. If you get an email from a friend and you have an unsettling feeling about it, remember contact your friend by phone to ensure that it was them that had contacted you.
Lorna Darden
Maverick’s Money Club