Cleaning seems to be needed! A recent report by cybersecurity firm Lookout reports that scams are on the rise on social media. With billions of people connected daily, scams are not uncommon and the methods very varied.
Phishing, identity theft, consumer scams, fake contests… On Facebook, 62% of users say they face scams at least once a week and, with the end of the year holidays approaching, the attempts seem to be intensifying. So, with 19% of social media users having been scammed on Facebook, it’s important to be on the lookout.
Fake contests or “freebies” are the most common scams on Facebook. Scams evolve following consumption habits, centers of interest and the latest trends. 46% of victims say they lost $100 or more. A questionable profile, an almost empty page recently created, suspicious URLs or unsecured payment sites, so you have to be relatively careful, because it’s often too good to be true!
Some platforms are more targeted than others. According to data from Lookout, Facebook tops the list with an estimated 62% scam rate, followed by TikTok (60%), Whatsapp (57%), Instagram (56%), Twitter (53%) and LinkedIn (31%). %). On mainstream networks, contest scams and “giveaways” are common, while on LinkedIn it’s mostly about fake job postings and cryptocurrencies.
Everywhere, all the time
Apart from social networks, email and SMS scams are also very common. 46% of respondents say they receive a scam daily by email, and 31% by SMS.