14 DAY TRIAL // Facebook users are targeted by a new survey scam which lures them with an app allegedly capable of showing them how they'll would look when they're old.
The spam message spread from the victims' profiles reads: "hahah mine is halrious!!! check yours out :) See what you'll look in the future! This cutting-edge technology will show you exactly how your face will look in the future!"
The included link takes users to a page asking them to give an app access to post on their walls. Once installed, this application silently sends spam in their name.
Users are then redirected to a page displaying a "Show Me" button overlaid with a dialog asking them to take a survey as a security check.
Some of these surveys are deceptive and can trick users into subscribing to costly services. They are usually part of affiliate marketing schemes that pay scammers commission money.
In this particular case, scammers lure users with a feature that actually exists. There are some legit applications capable of simulating a person's aging based on a photo.
In order circumstances, however, the promised features are not available on Facebook or have been explicitly banned. Such is the case of another scam currently circulating on the social networking site which promises users to show them their most active profile viewers.
However, disclosing the identity of profile visitors would have serious privacy implications, reason for which Facebook clearly states that this feature is not available. All apps claiming otherwise are fake and so are those claiming to show users who removed the victim from their friends list.
Instead of relying on rogue apps, this scam uses an old technique of asking victims to paste rogue JavaScript code into their browser's address bar.
Users who fell victim to these scams should remove the rogue apps from the profile by going to Account > Privacy Settings > Applications and Websites. The spam messages posted on their wall should also be deleted.