14 DAY TRIAL // A scheme that’s making the rounds on email and social media accounts advertises another Facebook Timeline remover. In this scam, the crooks claim that the user’s social media account credentials are needed for the app to work.
Symantec experts inform that as in previous plots, once the user hands over his/her credentials, nothing happens, since in reality the Timeline cannot be removed. But let’s take a look at how this scheme works.
First, the links promoted on social networks and via spam emails lead to a website that recommends the Timeline remove app. Hosted on a free hosting service, the site displays the official Facebook video, along with the logo of a respected security solutions provider, just to make everything look more legit.
“Do you hate timeline? Now is your time to decide to remove it forever and ever. As you you enter your facebook email and pass here it will remove your timline,” reads a message on the phishing site.
Once the email address and passwords are provided, the victim is redirected to a webpage that displays a screenshot of the legitimate Timeline video. At this stage, the credentials are already stored in the database managed by the crooks and there’s a great chance that your account may be lost.
Fortunately, Facebook implemented some extra security features in the past months, including one that checks the location of the individual who attempts to sign in to an account.
For instance, if you live in the US and the cybercriminals that steal your login data are from China, the protection implemented by Zuckerberg’s company may prevent them from accessing your assets.
Users are advised never to hand out personal information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details in response to an email or the requests made on a suspicious site. We assure everyone that once a legitimate Timeline-remover is made available (if there ever is one), you will learn about it from legitimate sources.