Scammers Posing as Facebook Employees or Friends

Facebook users, beware of scammers posing as Facebook employees or your friends. Scammers are telling their potential victims that they are Facebook lottery winners or winners of some so-called Facebook promotion, and the victims need to send money in order to cover the cost of delivering their lottery prizes to them. The scammers will also ask their potential victims for their personal information, credit card information and other financial information, which they will use to rip off their victims.

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Scammers Posing as Facebook Employees or Friends

To make the scams look legitimate, the scammers pretend to be Facebook employers by spoofing their email address or creating fake Facebook profiles. They (scammers) also pretend to be their potential victims’ friends by cloning their potential victims’ Facebook accounts, or by hijacking their potential victims’ Facebook friends’ accounts, and then using the same cloned or hijacked accounts to contact their potential victims.

To learn more about Facebook Profile Cloning, please click here, or to learn more about Email Spoofing, please click here.

When scammers use those deceptive techniques, it will make their scam messages appear as if it came from their potential victims’ friends, Facebook or other legitimate organizations. So, it is important that Facebook users remember that there is no Facebook lottery or promotion, so if someone calls them or send them an email message, text message or social media chat message, they should disconnect the call or delete the message, even if the message appears as if it came from a friend or a legitimate organization. And, Facebook users should never send their personal or financial information to anyone who requests the same via a telephone call, email, text or social media chat message, because Facebook will never ask their users or others, to send their information via any of those forms of communication media, or to send them money in order to collect some so-called prize.

Below are comments from Facebook users who were contacted by scammers, who attempted to trick them into sending money, personal or financial information.

Complaints from Potential Victims of Facebook Scammers

One of my Facebook friends asked me if I got my bonus. I asked him what bonus? He said your Facebook promotions bonus. So I laughed. He said it's not a joke...they delivered cash to my house. He said all I had to do is text this guy Eric at (706)666-3518. So I did, and I asked the guy if this is a scam. He claims it is not. My Facebook friend also inboxed me a clear bag of money with stacks of bundled cash in it that he claims they delivered. I called the number also but no one answered...but the recording said something about Google in it.

This person keeps texting me asking for my name, address, telephone number, sex, occupation, city and state. They claim they are going to deliver $50,000 to my door in a few hours. They just need me to send the fee through MoneyGram which is $350. I told them no, I don't have any money. I said you can take my fees out of my $50,000. They claim they cannot open my money until they get to my house. The guy said I could pay half the fees and I could give him the other half when he gets to my house.

My Facebook friend is really acting like this is really legit and like he really got money from them. My friend said I really want you to get your money, how much of the fees do you have? I told him none of it. The guy Eric keeps texting me and will not stop. He wants to know when and what day I will have the fees. He claims my name was on some promotional awards list and told me not to tell anyone about my award. This sounds really fake so I'm quite sure it is. That's why I decided to report it.

There is something similar going around, don't know if it's the same deal. Someone told me to contact Brenda Fox with the Powerball lottery, same scenario on seeing my name on a list. My cousin gave the money and said she was delivered her money by FedEx.

I was asked for 650.00 to be giving to the FedEx agent to receive mine. Didn’t sound right to me so i told them I couldn't do that. Then she asked about my bank and I wouldn't give out that info or the credit card info she asked for.

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Comments, Questions, Answers, or Reviews

Comments (Total: 3)

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July 5, 2018 at 5:14 PM by
Scammers Posing as Facebook Employees or Friends
an anonymous user from: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Just now after several attempts by these scammers they contacted me again. Saying they were from facebook CEO! Saying oh God something! They haven't stopped trying for several months now! Can't anything been done with them? Please!

Delete

March 13, 2017 at 5:20 PM by
Scammers Posing as Facebook Employees or Friends
an anonymous user from: Akron, Ohio, United States

I screenshot everything he has said I knew he was bs from the beginning; he has my mom believing him so I called him he's some forgien guy cutting in an out I sent his screen shot to the police they'll do nothing anyways but they know.

Delete

August 10, 2016 at 9:12 PM by
Scammers Posing as Facebook Employees or Friends
info

Here is a sad story that we have received from a victim of Facebook lottery scam:

"On August 1 I received a message from a good friend on Facebook saying he had won the Facebook lottery and that I SHOULD CHECK IT OUT AS MY NAME WAS ON THE LIST. I did check the list and my name was one it and so I preceded to click on this lady Mary Allen who was supposedly in charge of the lottery and she then accepted me as her friend and then she told me I had won the Facebook lottery of 400,000.00 and that if I send them a $1000.00 dollars my winnings would be delivered to me in 4 hours.

I did think it was legit as my friend said he had won and got his money, but finding that this Mary Allen was using my name and profile to make me think that he had one and that I could get my winnings. I then waited the four hours and nothing came so was watching for her to chat with me and she had text me that they had an accident with the ups truck and in order to finish the delivery she needed another 220 and which then seeing the pictures of accident I sent her the money, which all money was sent by Moneygram, which I have all receipts for these transactions. Well then another four hours had past and she had text me saying that they got caught by the IRS and needed another 120 to finish coming to my house with my winnings in a box.

I then realized after talking to my friend that he had not won any such thing and they were using him as a way to get to me and then when she text me I refused to send anymore money as I knew than that it was a scam. I am now out of my bill money for my rent, lights, gas and other funds as she scammed me saying she was the president of Facebook. I am asking for my refunds to be refunded back to me as it was my social security money and I cant live the rest of the month this way."

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Online Threat Alerts Security Tips

Pay the safest way

Credit cards are the safest way to pay for online purchases because you can dispute the charges if you never get the goods or services or if the offer was misrepresented. Federal law limits your liability to $50 if someone makes unauthorized charges to your account, and most credit card issuers will remove them completely if you report the problem promptly.

Guard your personal information

In any transaction you conduct, make sure to check with your state or local consumer protection agency and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to see if the seller, charity, company, or organization is credible. Be especially wary if the entity is unfamiliar to you. Always call the number found on a website’s contact information to make sure the number legitimately belongs to the entity you are dealing with.

Be careful of the information you share

Never give out your codes, passwords or personal information, unless you are sure of who you're dealing with

Know who you’re dealing with

Crooks pretending to be from companies you do business with may call or send an email, claiming they need to verify your personal information. Don’t provide your credit card or bank account number unless you are actually paying for something and know who you are sending payment to. Your social security number should not be necessary unless you are applying for credit. Be especially suspicious if someone claiming to be from a company with whom you have an account asks for information that the business already has.

Check your accounts

Regularly check your account transactions and report any suspicious or unauthorised transactions.

Don’t believe promises of easy money

If someone claims that you can earn money with little or no work, get a loan or credit card even if you have bad credit, or make money on an investment with little or no risk, it’s probably a scam. Oftentimes, offers that seem too good to be true, actually are too good to be true.

Do not open email from people you don’t know

If you are unsure whether an email you received is legitimate, try contacting the sender directly via other means. Do not click on any links in an email unless you are sure it is safe.

Think before you click

If an email or text message looks suspicious, don’t open any attachments or click on the links.

Verify urgent requests or unsolicited emails, messages or phone calls before you respond

If you receive a message or a phone call asking for immediate action and don't know the sender, it could be a phishing message.

Be careful with links and new website addresses

Malicious website addresses may appear almost identical to legitimate sites. Scammers often use a slight variation in spelling or logo to lure you. Malicious links can also come from friends whose email has unknowingly been compromised, so be careful.

Secure your personal information

Before providing any personal information, such as your date of birth, Social Security number, account numbers, and passwords, be sure the website is secure.

Stay informed on the latest cyber threats

Keep yourself up to date on current scams by visiting this website daily.

Use Strong Passwords

Strong passwords are critical to online security.

Keep your software up to date and maintain preventative software programs

Keep all of your software applications up to date on your computers and mobile devices. Install software that provides antivirus, firewall, and email filter services.

Update the operating systems on your electronic devices

Make sure your operating systems (OSs) and applications are up to date on all of your electronic devices. Older and unpatched versions of OSs and software are the target of many hacks. Read the CISA security tip on Understanding Patches and Software Updates for more information.

What if You Got Scammed?

Stop Contact With The Scammer

Hang up the phone. Do not reply to emails, messages, or letters that the scammer sends. Do not make any more payments to the scammer. Beware of additional scammers who may contact you claiming they can help you get your lost money back.

Secure Your Finances

  • Report potentially compromised bank account, credit or debit card information to your financial institution(s) immediately. They may be able to cancel or reverse fraudulent transactions.
  • Notify the three major credit bureaus. They can add a fraud alert to warn potential credit grantors that you may be a victim of identity theft. You may also want to consider placing a free security freeze on your credit report. Doing so prevents lenders and others from accessing your credit report entirely, which will prevent them from extending credit:

Check Your Computer

If your computer was accessed or otherwise affected by a scam, check to make sure that your anti-virus is up-to-date and running and that your system is free of malware and keylogging software. You may also need to seek the help of a computer repair company. Consider utilizing the Better Business Bureau’s website to find a reputable company.

Change Your Account Passwords

Update your bank, credit card, social media, and email account passwords to try to limit further unauthorized access. Make sure to choose strong passwords when changing account passwords.

Report The Scam

Reporting helps protect others. While agencies can’t always track down perpetrators of crimes against scammers, they can utilize the information gathered to record patterns of abuse which may lead to action being taken against a company or industry.

Report your issue to the following agencies based on the nature of the scam:

  • Local Law Enforcement: Consumers are encouraged to report scams to their local police department or sheriff’s office, especially if you lost money or property or had your identity compromised.
  • Federal Trade Commission: Contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357) or use the Online Complaint Assistant to report various types of fraud, including counterfeit checks, lottery or sweepstakes scams, and more.
  • Identitytheft.gov: If someone is using your personal information, like your Social Security, credit card, or bank account number, to open new accounts, make purchases, or get a tax refund, report it at www.identitytheft.gov. This federal government site will also help you create your Identity Theft Report and a personal recovery plan based on your situation. Questions can be directed to 877-ID THEFT.

How To Recognize a Phishing Scam

Scammers use email or text messages to try to steal your passwords, account numbers, or Social Security numbers. If they get that information, they could get access to your email, bank, or other accounts. Or they could sell your information to other scammers. Scammers launch thousands of phishing attacks like these every day — and they’re often successful.

Scammers often update their tactics to keep up with the latest news or trends, but here are some common tactics used in phishing emails or text messages:

Phishing emails and text messages often tell a story to trick you into clicking on a link or opening an attachment. You might get an unexpected email or text message that looks like it’s from a company you know or trust, like a bank or a credit card or utility company. Or maybe it’s from an online payment website or app. The message could be from a scammer, who might

  • say they’ve noticed some suspicious activity or log-in attempts — they haven’t
  • claim there’s a problem with your account or your payment information — there isn’t
  • say you need to confirm some personal or financial information — you don’t
  • include an invoice you don’t recognize — it’s fake
  • want you to click on a link to make a payment — but the link has malware
  • say you’re eligible to register for a government refund — it’s a scam
  • offer a coupon for free stuff — it’s not real

About Online Threat Alerts (OTA)

Online Threat Alerts or OTA is an anti-cybercrime community that started in 2012. OTA alerts the public to cyber crimes and other web threats.

By alerting the public, we have prevented a lot of online users from getting scammed or becoming victims of cybercrimes.

With the ever-increasing number of people going online, it important to have a community like OTA that continuously alerts or protects those same people from cyber-criminals, scammers and hackers, who are every day finding new ways of carrying out their malicious activities.

Online users can help by reporting suspicious or malicious messages or websites to OTA. And, if they want to determine if a message or website is a threat or scam, they can use OTA's search engine to search for the website or parts of the message for information.

Help maintain Online Threat Alerts (OTA).

Scammers Posing as Facebook Employees or Friends