Friday, January 8, 2010

Scam Poses as Facebook Group Against 'Monthly Charge'

It's no secret that playing on people's fears is the best way to manipulate them. So, what's the biggest fear of a social networking addict? Paying for access, of course. And that paranoia is just what a new Facebook scam exploits.

A group called "WE'RE AGAINST THE 4.99 A MONTH CHARGE FOR FACEBOOK FROM JUNE 30TH 2010" isn't an outlet for angry Facebookers. In fact, it's one big malware scam, which could grow even bigger since the group already has 133,000 members. Contrary to the group's claims, you're not going to have to pay to keep tabs on your friends (at least, not that we've heard). The page contains a blank Wall, except for a link that sends you to a site that downloads 25 malicious items to your hard drive.

What's the best way to avoid falling victim to this scam? To start, don't visit the group's page, and certainly don't click the link (or any unknown link, for that matter). Next, let the folks at Facebook know about this scam by clicking on the Settings tab at the top of the site's page. Lastly, tell your friends. Make that status update useful for once, instead of using it to whine or to copy lyrics from a pop song.

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