Facebook 'Friend' Emergency Latest Online Scam

Cybercriminals hijack Facebook accounts to pose as friends in crisis

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Feb 6, 2009 5:33 AM CST

(Newser) – Fraudsters posing as friends who need emergency cash are scamming Facebook users out of thousands of dollars, CNN reports. Criminals filch Facebook identities, then bombard their friends with desperate-sounding messages pleading for money. The scammers often claim to have been robbed in a foreign country... Read full story »

COMMENTS

Read the comment policy

You need to Log in to Newser to comment. Don't have an account yet? Sign up now!

2 comments

A snapshot of the day's best news stories.

View Larger Grid

All Today Yesterday Pick a Date

What's Popular Now on Facebook

Miami Face-Eater Identified

'Serpent Pastor' Dies of Snake Bite

CNN (Source Grid »)

Hackers beg Facebook friends for money
MSNBC

Transcript reveals scamster's digging for details
Washington Post

Man charged with Facebook sex scam
Wired

Lifestyle • Crime & Courts • Media • Technology

social networking • online fraud • fraud • Facebook • scam • cybercrime

More Newser Stories

Nigerian Scamsters Want to Be Your Friend

Con artists try to fool Facebook users by posing as friends in need

(NEWSER) - Nigeria's notorious cybercriminals are looking for some buddies, Ars Technica reports. The conmen have infiltrated social networking sites like Facebook by filching passwords and contacting users in the guise of a friend who suddenly, urgently needs funds. Internet security experts fear the new tactic could prove a lot more effective that the standard scamming emails, as it hijacks the identity of someone the target knows. More»

Teens Behind 'Crimebook' Web Forum Sentenced

British teens created 'Facebook for crooks'

(NEWSER) - A career in cybercrime that began with hacking into boarding school records to erase friends' detention records ended yesterday with a 19-year-old ringleader sentenced to up to 5 years in jail. Nick Webber and two teenage accomplices were convicted of setting up a "Facebook for crooks" on which criminals around the world could exchange stolen credit card and bank details, the Guardian reports. More»

Fake Soldiers Scam Facebook Users

Military warns women to beware of impersonators looking for love

(NEWSER) - Facebook users need to watch out for a shameful scam that appears to be becoming more widespread, military officials warn. Con artists have been using the photos and details of real soldiers to strike up romances with women on the social networking site, the AP reports. The phony soldiers declare their undying love—then ask for cash, saying they need special cell phones or special papers to come home on leave. One woman lost $25,000 to the scam. More»

The Facebook 'Dislike' App Is Bogus

Spam malware preys on your desire to insult your friends

(NEWSER) - A Facebook scam is taking advantage of users who want to hate on posts, links, and pictures. The purported "dislike" app, ostensibly from a Facebook friend, forwards would-be curmudgeons to a page that promises "shocking video"—but instead prompts them to complete surveys, which the BBC notes appear to be legitimate and presumably generate income for the scam's authors. More»

Swindlers Are Trying to Tweet You

Scamsters use site to get rich from phony cash-for-tweets schemes

(NEWSER) - The world's lowlifes are taking full advantage of Twitter's high profile, the Los Angeles Times reports. The Better Business Bureau warns that there has been a surge in scamsters luring people into phony work-from-home schemes. They urge users to be extremely wary of any "cash-for-tweets" scheme offering easy income. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Facebook 'Friend' Emergency Latest Online Scam

Cybercriminals hijack Facebook accounts to pose as friends in crisis

social networking • online fraud • fraud • Facebook • scam • cybercrime

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Nigerian Scamsters Want to Be Your Friend

Con artists try to fool Facebook users by posing as friends in need

Teens Behind 'Crimebook' Web Forum Sentenced

British teens created 'Facebook for crooks'

Fake Soldiers Scam Facebook Users

Military warns women to beware of impersonators looking for love

The Facebook 'Dislike' App Is Bogus

Spam malware preys on your desire to insult your friends

Swindlers Are Trying to Tweet You

Scamsters use site to get rich from phony cash-for-tweets schemes

About Us

Site

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?