Scammers skulking on social networking sites
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Criminals are increasingly turning to social networking sites to commit identity theft and fraud, it has been claimed.
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, there is growing evidence that fraudsters are becoming particularly fond of facebook, with growing numbers of people being targeted by their 'friends'.
One such person is Karina Wells, who was alarmed to get a message from her friend asking for money to help him get a ticket home because he was stranded in Lagos, Nigeria.
However, she realized that she was dealing with a phishing scam when the criminal who had hijacked her friend's account began using Americanisms such as "cell", which Australians call mobile phones.
"I pretended that I would help, obtained all the details of where he was and forwarded them to both Facebook and the relevant authorities," she said.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the social networking site said that it is reviewing its security procedures to reduce the risk of people being involved in phishing scams.
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