Scam warning: SICK! I lost all respect for Miley Cyrus when I watched this video!
It looks like Justin Bieber is not the only one being used in old Facebook scams that seem to have gotten a boost this week under new headlines taking advantage of celebrity obsessions. Miley Cyrus and Emma Watson are also seeing their names spread like wildfire on Facebook.
Please be wary of messages such as "SICK! I lost all respect for Miley Cyrus when I watched this video!" or "I lost all respect for Emma Watson when I seen this video! Outrageous!". Just like the Bieber "likejacking" scam (a play on the term clickjacking, which means prompting a victim to click something while a different action is taken behind the scenes) these two will also lead you to a fake YouTube page such as TouTube or FbTube that says "Please Watch this video only if you are 16 years or older."
The Fake YouTube player video window is overlayed with a hidden iframe; clicking on it anywhere will submit a Facebook Like and spread the post to your Facebook page. A fake Facebook dialog box also pops up and asks you to verify his or her age by completing a survey with links to various marketing surveys. The scammer earns his or her money via a commission for every survey completed. They can even trick you into handing over your mobile phone number to sign you up for a premium rate SMS service.
As I've recommended before, if you see a scam like this one, report it. Then go check your own wall to make sure you're not spreading the scam. You can even contact Facebook Security if you'd like to.
See also:
- Facebook virus or account hacked? Here's how to fix it.
- Facebook releases official Guide to Facebook Security
- Experts: Facebook crime is on the rise
- Sex sells: Men fall for Facebook scams more than women
- Researchers invade Facebook with socialbots, grab 250GB of data
- Facebook Immune System checks 25 billion actions every day