Facebook: A Fraudster’s Playground?
Avid user of Facebook’s countless number of applications? Think again. As much as you may enjoy ‘Owning’ your friends or ’superpoking’ one another, what many regular users don’t realize is the danger of joining too many Facebook applications. Don’t get me wrong. Facebook applications are one of the main features which makes Facebook so unique in comparison to other major social networks such as Myspace and Bebo however this glee is not just expressed by us regular users but it is also shared with fraudsters as well. Why? Facebook applications give them the perfect opportunity to collect confidential data without too much effort. It’s like a ticking bomb waiting to explode. All a fraudster needs is one successful application and he can get hold of personal details from as many as a hundred thousand Facebook users or even more. Has this ever came to your mind? I doubt so. Many of you would have thought that changing your privacy settings would have been enough to deter the fraudsters away but again, you’re wrong. The internet era has now come to a stage when everything is shared online, regardless of its confidentiality but why make such a big fuss of fraudsters getting a hold of your personal details? Simple. Identity theft, stealing money, possibly even revenge just to name a few. Fraudsters can also sell valid email addresses in batches to spammers which will just increase your spam load even further. There is enough personal detail in your facebook profile for anyone to pretend to be ‘you’ and sign up for bank accounts, credit cards… anything! They can take advantage of this and spend as much as they want while the final bills are all sent to you.
I admit that the chances of this happening is not very high but why take the chance? Why don’t you just eradicate the problem in case there is that slight possibility that you are a fraudster’s next victim? Before I go over the main principles of protecting yourselves from Facebook fraudsters, let me show you one image that many people tend to ignore and forget despite its important significance (Unfortunately, this statement has now disappeared after the new facebook has been implemented to “speed” up the application joining process).
This very statement: “Developer access will let it pull your profile information, photos, your friends’ info, and other content that it requires to work” is the gold mine for any fraudsters. The fact that applications even enable developers to have access to your friends info makes it all the better for them. Now, let me go over tips to avoid Facebook spam applications. Remember, I don’t discourage you from adding Facebook applications because they are a hell of a lot fun but always take precaution as you just don’t know the hidden intentions behind the developers.
1. Don’t add applications with a small number of users or is in decline.
This comes down as common sense for me. In most cases, a small number of users show that the application is unpopular. Of course, if the application is targeted for a small target group then it is perfectly acceptable to add that specific application. Another rule of thumb is to not join any Facebook applications facing a decline in popularity. The decline can either show that the application has lost is trendiness or may have caused a problem for the majority of its users due to possible glitches and hacks. To check an application’s popularity trend, check out Facebook Lexicon. Facebook Lexicon is a service which analyzes how many times a specific word is mentioned on public walls and converts the results into graphs, just like Google’s Hot trend service. Just type in the name of the application and see what happens. An example of a Facebook lexicon graph is shown below.
Things don’t look too bright for the Superpoke Application!
2. Always check user reviews before adding an application
If the majority of user reviews are negative then it tells you something about the application right? You can read user reviews at the application’s main page.
3. Immediately remove any applications which you have stopped using.
Don’t need em? Dump them. Fraudsters may take advantage of old applications which developers don’t update anymore and take away all the personal information they require.
4. Avoid adding applications which require you to submit extended information about yourself.
You already have your Facebook profile. Is there really need to add further information on top of that? It’ll just make life easier for fraudsters as they will have a more complete profile of you or anyone who falls into their traps.
Yes. Some may do it for fun. Some may do it due to low esteem but go out there in the real world and meet real people! You don’t know if these unknown Facebookers are masking their real self with hot photos. For all you know, a hot 25 year old babe could turn out to be a bored 14 year old kid (I believe there was a story similar to this in the news recently).
5. Don’t join any real making money scheme applications or applications which require you to pay
I understand that some of you are desperate to earn that extra bit of cash but using facebook applications is a BIG no no. The majority of earning money applications usually ask you to click ads or sign up for offers using your credit card. Problem no. 1, you are giving away your credit card details. Problem no. 2, you earn very little cash despite the claims of people earning over 10,000 US a day. These claims are all fake to entice you people! As for paying for applications, is it really necessary? I am aware of some games such as ‘Pet Society’ which has integrated a payment system but is your money really worth spending on facebook flash games?
I hope you found this article interesting and useful. These are my last words which I hope will remain in your memory whenever you log on to facebook. Always be cautious of every application you add and don’t accept friend requests from people who you have never heard of before, they’ll most likely turn out to be spammers or fraudsters.
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