Facebook Scam: Samsung TV Giveaway

A new Facebook scam is out, this Facebook scam claims to be giving away a 40inch Samsung TV just by sharing and liking a promotional image.

The page is not real, and has no connection with Big W, the alleged company giving away the TV.
There are no prizes nor winners for this “prize”.

The bogus claim, is like a farming scam, designed to get likes and shares under false pretenses.
The genuine Big W Facebook Page has published a warning about the scam.

 

Facebook Scam Analysis

According to the Facebook Page, visitors can win one of fifteen 40inch Samsung Smart TV’s.  All the user has to do is like and share the Facebook promotional page.

The Page claims to give-a-way the prize “tomorrow night”.

Big W published the following warning about the scam on July 17, 2013 via its genuine Facebook Page:

HOAX BIG W FACEBOOK ACCOUNT: We have had reports of an account posing as BIG W which is claiming to give away free TVs. This is a scam, so make sure you don’t give any of your personal information should they get in touch with you.
Web safety is very important, so make sure you check that an account is authentic by clicking on the account name and checking out their page. The account in question was started two hours ago, which makes it an obvious impostor. Please let us know if you see any pages posing as us. Thanks guys!

These scams are like the Harvey Norman and Kmart Australia Facebook Pages.

The Facebook scams are created by altering the name of their targeted entity.  The Big W page’s logo has been stolen to target the company’s Page and to make them seem more of a legitimate offer.

These “Like-Farmers” avail to get the most likes to their pages in the shortest period of time.  By tricking people into sharing their material and making comments, the like-farmers promote their scam.








The higher number of likes can later be sole on the black market, and the re-branded object can be better suited for future scams.

Surveys and other personal information from participants are collected throughout this process as this functions as a platform for other types of fraudulent activity.

Like-Farming is now very common to Facebook pages.  Many like-farming Pages offer expensive prizes and pop up on the network everyday.

Companies get a lot of exposure if they offer something for “free” through Facebook likes and sharing of pages.

Be wary of any Facebook message that claims you can win an expensive prize just by liking or sharing a picture.


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References:
http://www.hoax-slayer.com/big-w-like-farming-scam.shtml

Facebook’s ‘Closed for Maintenance’ Prank

You may notice a post appearing on your Facebook page that says, “Facebook will be closed for maintenance between the 29th and 31st of February“.

Don’t fret, Facebook will not be closed for maintenance, you may continue combing through your friends posts and scowling for sophomoric aphorism’s to make you look cool and clever.

The Facebook message is a silly prank, although it appears to fool many.  Facebook is NOT planning on being closed for maintenance.  If Facebook was planning on closing, it clearly would not be closed on February 30th and 31st.  It is not leap year, so February 29th will not be coming up either.  None of these dates exist on our calendar.




Versions of the same “warning” have been circulating since 2011.

Late in 2013, a graphical version of the hoax began circulating on Facebook.

The prank shows how the immediacy of social media usage, and how it causes users to re-post without much thought of the pseudo prank.

There have been plenty of similar hoaxes that continue to fool gullible Internet users.  A long running hoax from April Fools Day claimed that the entire Internet was scheduled to be closed for maintenance for a 24 hour period during which a “tune-up” will be performed and “high pressure information jets” will be used to “clear out the bottlenecks”.

Other outrageous hoaxes on Facebook claim that Facebook is to be shutdown due to congestion or because managing the site has become too stressful for the all knowing Mr. Zukerburg.

These pranks and fake messages are nothing more than to pull your leg.  But, as long as users are out there and are quick to hit the share button, the pranks will be passes on.

Have you seen a Facebook prank like this?  Please share your story with us!

Don’t miss out on the latest tech news and computer security alerts! Follow us on Twitter at @hyphenet,  “Like” us on Facebook or add us to your circle on Google+

References:
Facebook ‘Closed for Maintenance’ Prank – Hoax Slayer
http://www.hoax-slayer.com/facebook-closed-maintenance-hoax.shtml

Facebook Alert: Mother of missing teenager falls victim of Facebook scam

Messages containing information of missing children have been popping up on social media sites, trying to get the word out that a child has gone missing.
A mother, Christina Potwin has become a victim of a Facebook scam when she posted on the social media site that her 15-year old daughter was missing.
An internet scammer by the name of “Christian Mills” contacted her, sending her dozens of emails demanding money in exchange for information of the wherabouts of Potwin’s daughter.
This video gives more detail on what happened.  Christina Potwin’s daughter was found safe at a friends house.


http://www.wtsp.com/news/national/article/333763/79/Internet-scammer-targets-mom-of-missing-teen