‘Prayers for Likes’ Facebook Scam

Pictures of sick babies circulate through social media sites, especially through Facebook.

These images are of sick children, less fortunate families, and persons with deformities.



Specifically, a sick baby with hospital equipment in the background which claims that liking the image equates to a prayer for the child while sharing equates to one hundred prayers.

The disgraceful scam is designed to accumulate likes for a Facebook Page and promote the Page for more shares.

The image of the baby was stolen from a personal Facebook profile and is being circulated without the baby’s parents permission.

This is how most Facebook scams work.  Pictures are distributed and not authorized to be shared, then stolen from its rightful owners.

Tragically, the baby in the picture passed away only two weeks after she was born.

The message continued to circulate, causing great distress to the baby’s family.

If you see messages like this on Facebook, please do not like or share it.

Analysis

Like farming and sharing messages will not help the baby or the baby’s family in any way.  The message is just a tic in the long branch of sick baby hoaxes that falsely claim that you can help a baby by liking or sharing the message.




Some messages claim that money will be donated in exchange for liking or sharing.  Others declare that liking and sharing equates to prayers for the child.

The people who create these messages are driven by greed and selfishness.

This precious baby passed away April 2014, just weeks after she was born.

Whether or not you believe that prayers will help, the real intention of this scam is not pure.

Facebook has removed some of these messages and continues to take them down in a timely manner.

Although, there have been numerous reports, there are still some messages that continue to circulate with no action taken.

If you see scams  like this, please report them to Facebook as soon as possible.

Report a scam:

https://www.facebook.com/help/344403945636114/

http://facecrooks.com/Internet-Safety-Privacy/How-to-report-a-Facebook-scam.html/

What Facebook scams have you come across lately?  Please share your experience and help us take control over these cruel messages.

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:

‘Prayers for Likes’ Facebook Sick Baby Scam – Hoax-Slayer
http://www.hoax-slayer.com/prayers-for-likes-facebook-scam.shtml

Half of U.S. Adults have been hacked: Are you one of them?

AARP has estimated, nearly half of all adult Americans have been hacked in the past year.  The Better Business Bureau said 1 in 5 of all victims are college students or in their twenties.

Identity theft is exponentially rising while users aren’t realizing the true risk that is posed.

Roughly, 432 million online accounts that belong to 110 million Americans, which are half of all adults were hacked in cyber-attacks in the past year.

Consumer Reports estimates that 11 million Americans were victimized from email scams in 2013.

This year alone, there have been 260 breaches that have occurred in health facilities, exposing the sensitive data of 8 million people.

Could this be from health care facilities still using Microsoft Windows XP?  The software is no longer supported and vulnerable to zero-day exploits.

From coffee shops to corporate networks, grocery stores to airports, two-thirds of surfers have nothing to protect themselves.

AARP has launched Fraud Watch Network, where you can get access to information about how to protect yourself and stay alert on the latest tricks and scams.

The best ways to safeguard your personal data are:

1. Don’t share if you don’t have to
2. Monitor your finances
3. Protect your electronic devices and accounts
4. Leave a paper trail
5. Don’t trust everyone

Studies have shown that from the ages of 18 to 24, in the average of 132 days, they’ve been scammed.
 
That’s five times larger than the national average.

This goes to show why university computers are popular targets for cyber-criminals.

This year nearly 840,000 private records were exposed in breach attacks in at least 12 universities.
 
Universities affected are: University of Maryland, Indiana University, Johns Hopkins University, Iowa State, University of Minnesota, Auburn University College of Business, University of Wisconsin, Loyola Law School and North Dakota University.

Also, there were 5,000 records hacked in 10 data breaches of financial institutions, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center.

Reducing identity theft includes:

• Monitoring financing accounts
• Keeping checkbooks and statements
• Securely storing computers and all devices
• Avoiding Wi-Fi networks when shopping online
• Reading reviews before installing apps
• Decline free game downloads, music, and screen savers
• Adjust privacy settings for your social network sites
• Use credit cards instead of debit cards for liability protection
• Shredding solicitations for pre-approved credit cards

You can opt out of certain solicitations at https://www.optoutprescreen.com

For information on other scams, sign up for the Fraud Watch Network.

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:

Kirchheimer, Sid
Half of U.S. Adults Hacked: Are You Among Them? – AARP Blog
http://blog.aarp.org/2014/06/06/half-of-u-s-adults-hacked-are-you-among-them/
June 6, 2014

Kirchheimer, Sid
College Students: Ideal for ID Theft – AARP Blog
http://blog.aarp.org/2014/05/16/college-students-ideal-for-id-theft…

Black Friday Spam

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