Social Media

Symantec Connect: In recent years, scammers have flocked towards social networking sites as they have grown and made it easier to access a large number of potential eyeballs to convert into dollars. Brands have found value in leveraging social media to know what their customers are talking about, so, naturally, scammers are doing the exact same thing. Free iPads and iPhones Every time Apple unveils a new iPad or iPhone, you can bet there are scammers out there trying to leverage the announcement for financial gain. In the days leading up to and after the announcement of the new third-generation iPad, Twitter users who tweet about the new tablet most likely will receive some targeted Twitter replies from scammers offering the new device for free: ...

Symantec Connect: Phishers regularly introduce new types of fake applications with the motive of improving their chance to harvest user credentials. In February 2012, Symantec observed a phishing site recommending a fake application that allegedly removes “Timeline” profile for Facebook users. The phishing site was hosted on a free web hosting site. The phishing site embedded the Facebook Timeline promotion video from YouTube, with the claim “Remove Timeline Now”. According to this phishing site, users will have their “Timeline” removed from their Facebook profile and get back their old profile page—only after they enter their login credentials. To make the fake application look more authentic, phishers added that it was protected by an antivirus product with the logo of the antivirus brand placed below the login form. After user credentials are entered, the phishing page redirects to a page which displays a screenshot from the Facebook Timeline promotion video. If users fell victim to the phishing site by entering their login credentials, phishers would have successfully stolen their information for identity theft purposes. ...

SophosLabs: Messages are spreading between Facebook users, claiming that members of the social network have lost all respect for popular songstress Rihanna after watching a video. However, if you’re careless enough to click on the link you will find yourself lured into a survey scam that attempts to earn affiliate cash for fraudsters. A typical message trying to tempt users into falling for the scam looks like this: ...

It is widely anticipated that Apple will announce a new version of its iPad tablet computer in San Francisco on March 7th. An invitation sent to journalists, inviting them to an event organized by Apple, has fueled speculation even further as it appears to show a close-up of someone using an iPad. Could it be the new iPad with a much lusted for improved display and souped-up processor? Only time will tell.. ...

SophosLabs: Facebook users overwhelmingly agree that it’s rude to post photos or videos of them without asking permission first. Some even think it should be illegal. Sophos has polled over 800 Facebook users, asking whether people should seek permission before posting photographs or videos online of others. Although a large majority – 83% – of polled Facebook users think it’s just common courtesy to ask permission before posting a photo or video of someone else (and a further 8% felt it should be illegal not to have received approval), some respondents believed that Facebook’s existing tagging controls allowed you to remove a picture that you didn’t want published online. ...

The H-Online: Twitter has announced that it has now enabled HTTPS by default for all users signed into the micro-blogging service. By using HTTPS, all user information including log-in credentials transmitted to the company’s servers are sent using SSL encryption. This means that all data is transmitted in encrypted form and can no longer be read and exploited for fraudulent activities by attackers using tools such as the Firesheep extension for Firefox. ...

SophosLabs: Have you seen the news? Maybe your friends have shared it with you. Apparently, Facebook is going to shut down on March 15th, 2012. Mark Zuckerberg has reportedly found running the site just too stressful. Here’s the link that many Facebook users have been sharing with each other. Some worried Facebook users have even been sharing this photograph of a news report about the claimed closure of the world’s most popular social network: ...

Mashable: LinkedIn on Thursday announced it has 150 million members in its network, a 20 million increase over November. The figure was disclosed in a press release the company issued Thursday announcing its fourth quarter and full-year 2011 results. The company posted revenues of $167.7 million, beating the analysts’ consensus of $160 million for Q4. Adjusted profit was $0.12 cents per share, which beat analysts’ projections of 7 cents a share. LinkedIn’s stock was up more than 5% in after-hours trading. ...

SophosLabs: Facebook’s IPO is the most hyped initial public offering in years, with much speculation about just how many billions of dollars the social networking phenomenon will be valued at. There’s no doubt that 27-year-old Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, is going to become a very rich man – and will be able to buy an even larger wardrobe of hoodies. So, congratulations to Zuck and his management team. Although we have often had our concerns about Facebook when it comes to their stand on privacy and security, there’s no doubt that they’ve done something extraordinary in commercial terms. ...

Pink Facebook? Red or black Facebook? No, it’s a scam you want to avoid. Share the knowledge with your friends! Credit to Norman Security for sharing 🙂

SophosLabs: Have you noticed the profile pics of some of your Facebook friends have acquired a pink tinge? Rumours have hit the social networking site that the Facebook app that turns your profile picture pink carries “keylogger malware” that can spy on your keypresses, and steal your passwords – not just from Facebook, but from online banks you may log into as well. One warning reads as follows: ...

SophosLabs: A hoax claiming that Facebook is planning to start charging users continues to spread across the social network, and has now been adapted by mischief-makers into a claim that the service will be free if users forward a message before midnight. Duped users are sharing the message with their online friends, believing it will help them avoid charges of between $3.99 and $9.99 per month. ...

SophosLabs: Pop singer Pink has posted an angry message to hackers, who she claims stole photographs from her Facebook page. But was Pink’s Facebook page really hacked, or was she just one of the many people who have been careless with their privacy settings? The Grammy award-winning singer, famous for hit records such as “Get the party started” and “God is a DJ”, posted on Twitter about the incident, but didn’t clarify the nature of the photos the hackers might have accessed. ...

SophosLabs: Even if it hasn’t been officially announced yet, and certainly isn’t available to the general public (unless an Apple employee loses a test model in a bar), there are plenty of scammers out there trying to trick you into believing you can get a free iPhone 5. Here’s just a sample of the pages on Facebook claiming to be an iPhone 5 giveaway. Typically they are trying to trick you into clicking on links, driving traffic to online surveys which earns them revenue. ...

TechSpot: Facebook plans to launch a music service on September 22, which happens to coincide with the company’s F8 conference. The news comes via CNBC’s twitter feed which reported the headline earlier today. A quick blurb on CNBC’s website also mentions the pending music service launch, suggesting that Facebook won’t actually host the music, but will partner with a provider to offer the service. There isn’t much more to go on at the moment, but this isn’t the first time we’ve heard such rumors. Last month, Facebook announced a video calling feature powered by Skype. Software developer Jeff Ross panned through the program’s code and found references to an app called Facebook Vibes which connects with a music download dialog. Ross posted the following statement on his blog. ...