Rule #1: Never, ever click on anything in a FB email. Always go to the site directly because everything that appears in FB email is also available on the web site.
Rule #2: Always be suspicious of email from FB when the spelling is incorrect (like the one above.... "recieve"?). Obviously written by a foreigner or someone who can't spell or use spell-check.
Rule #3: If in doubt, see Rule #1.
Facebook scammers are once again trying to pique your curiosity by leveraging your excitement about getting a notification on the social network. This time, they are claiming that you have a new message on Facebook, but via some terrible tragedy, it got lost.
This version says something along the lines of “Facebook sent you a notification” and “You have 1 lost message on Facebook, to recover a message follow the link below:” followed by a link that takes you to a spam site. There’s even a ” FAQ: Can you recieve messages if your inbox is full?” followed by a “Frequently Asked Questions” button. Everything is stylized like a Facebook e-mail, but Sophos notes that the link unsurprisingly takes you a site which recommends you questionable products for purchase.
It’s worth noting that the people behind this spam and scam campaign could change where the link leads to. They can modify where you will be redirected to depending on what type of browser or operating system you are running, and/or where you are based in the world. The most obvious and arguably worst case would be a phishing site designed to steal your Facebook username and password by providing you with a fake login screen.
The scammers’ goal is to drive more traffic towards certain sites. This is how the scammer earns his or her money: a commission for every survey completed, every product purchased, or every account compromised. They also use them to spread malware and obtain personal information.
As I’ve recommended before, if you see a scam like this one, mark the email as junk. You can even contact Facebook Security if you’d like to.
See also:
- Can you tell a real Facebook e-mail from a phishing attempt?
- Facebook releases official Guide to Facebook Security
- Experts: Facebook crime is on the rise
- Facebook con artist steals $366,000 from woman
- Fraudster jailed for stealing $57,000 by leveraging Facebook
- Facebook improves safety, security tools; experts not impressed
- Teenagers jailed for running “criminal equivalent of Facebook”
