HACKED FACEBOOKS
This is borrowed from a friend of mine
The Problem
Maybe you've seen it. One of your friends posts a comment on your profile that says something like:
"Check out this awesome picture I took at the party!"
OR
"Look at how stupid my ex is! She was totally wasted in this picture."
OR
"My IQ was 160... Can you beat mine?"
AND THEN each of these samples are followed by a weird-looking web link like: http://ow.ly/2fyHo.
Well, if you know anything about that particular friend, then you may or may not realize that the person would never post such things or that the comment seems at least slightly out of character for that individual.
So what is it really?
Well, basically, that particular friend fell victim to a Facebook hacker. But it is not just someone who sat down and kept guessing your friend's password. No, it is much easier than that for these hackers.
How does it work?
Basically, a friend of mine got hacked, and I immediately knew it based on the wording of the post which was totally out of character for my friend. So I opened a secure browsing session, and followed the link to see what happened. I was then faced with a page that said, "To view this Facebook page, you must first log in."
BUT I WAS ALREADY LOGGED IN. In case none of you have ever noticed, Facebook NEVER requires you to log in during the middle of a current session. Only if you log out or close your browser, does it ask you to log in again.
So, this "Facebook page" was asking me to log in to view this "picture" of my "friend" doing something amazing, apparently. But I looked at the ADDRESS BAR at the top of my internet browser, and the web address was NOT on "http://www.facebook.com/" but rather some other funky website.... EVEN THOUGH IT LOOKED LIKE A FACEBOOK PAGE. This is called a "phishing" scam.
Just a Thought...
Most of you know that I am a computer guy. I create websites on a very regular basis. I can EASILY mimic a Facebook page's look and feel. So if I can do it, then you can bet a pretty penny that others can do so just as easily. And all they would have to do is create a log-in form to complete the look, and then send it to people. Once they fall for it and type in their username and password to log in, THEY WOULD THEN HAVE THE VICTIM'S INFORMATION TO LOG IN.
THAT is how they do it, folks. You assume that you really do have to log back in, and so you just type in the information. But it is not a real Facebook page, so the creator of that fake page now has all your log-in information. They simply log into your account with your username and password, and then repost their fake link onto all of YOUR friends' pages, so that maybe some of THEM will fall for it.
BOTTOM LINE
Once you have already logged in, Facebook does not require you to sign in again to view anything. If you are already on Facebook, and it asks you to sign in, DO NOT DO IT.
Simply STOP what you are doing, and LOOK AT THE ADDRESS BAR and see if you are still on "http://www.facebook.com/". If the URL does not say that, then you are not on the real website, and it is a phishing scam.
Please copy this note of mine and paste it as your own note, and tag a lot of your friends in it so that they can know how to avoid falling victim to these hackers. I have noticed that it is happening more and more often to my own FB friends, which is what prompted me to write this.
-- Tyler Agan to see his original post click on his name
The Problem
Maybe you've seen it. One of your friends posts a comment on your profile that says something like:
"Check out this awesome picture I took at the party!"
OR
"Look at how stupid my ex is! She was totally wasted in this picture."
OR
"My IQ was 160... Can you beat mine?"
AND THEN each of these samples are followed by a weird-looking web link like: http://ow.ly/2fyHo.
Well, if you know anything about that particular friend, then you may or may not realize that the person would never post such things or that the comment seems at least slightly out of character for that individual.
So what is it really?
Well, basically, that particular friend fell victim to a Facebook hacker. But it is not just someone who sat down and kept guessing your friend's password. No, it is much easier than that for these hackers.
How does it work?
Basically, a friend of mine got hacked, and I immediately knew it based on the wording of the post which was totally out of character for my friend. So I opened a secure browsing session, and followed the link to see what happened. I was then faced with a page that said, "To view this Facebook page, you must first log in."
BUT I WAS ALREADY LOGGED IN. In case none of you have ever noticed, Facebook NEVER requires you to log in during the middle of a current session. Only if you log out or close your browser, does it ask you to log in again.
So, this "Facebook page" was asking me to log in to view this "picture" of my "friend" doing something amazing, apparently. But I looked at the ADDRESS BAR at the top of my internet browser, and the web address was NOT on "http://www.facebook.com/" but rather some other funky website.... EVEN THOUGH IT LOOKED LIKE A FACEBOOK PAGE. This is called a "phishing" scam.
Just a Thought...
Most of you know that I am a computer guy. I create websites on a very regular basis. I can EASILY mimic a Facebook page's look and feel. So if I can do it, then you can bet a pretty penny that others can do so just as easily. And all they would have to do is create a log-in form to complete the look, and then send it to people. Once they fall for it and type in their username and password to log in, THEY WOULD THEN HAVE THE VICTIM'S INFORMATION TO LOG IN.
THAT is how they do it, folks. You assume that you really do have to log back in, and so you just type in the information. But it is not a real Facebook page, so the creator of that fake page now has all your log-in information. They simply log into your account with your username and password, and then repost their fake link onto all of YOUR friends' pages, so that maybe some of THEM will fall for it.
BOTTOM LINE
Once you have already logged in, Facebook does not require you to sign in again to view anything. If you are already on Facebook, and it asks you to sign in, DO NOT DO IT.
Simply STOP what you are doing, and LOOK AT THE ADDRESS BAR and see if you are still on "http://www.facebook.com/". If the URL does not say that, then you are not on the real website, and it is a phishing scam.
Please copy this note of mine and paste it as your own note, and tag a lot of your friends in it so that they can know how to avoid falling victim to these hackers. I have noticed that it is happening more and more often to my own FB friends, which is what prompted me to write this.
-- Tyler Agan to see his original post click on his name
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