Curiosity spurs online scams: Tech security firm

If you think you are just too tech savvy to fall for online scams, including Facebook scams, a new study into the five most successful scams on the social network, would make you think again.

According to security firm Bitdefender, which looked at over 850,000 scams in two years, the five most common ''social e-threats'' tended to work on peoples' self-interest or curiosity, tempting them to click on suspicious links or download malware-infested software with a range of tricks, The Independent reported.

The most common of these was perhaps also the most relatable: Bitdefender claims that ''Guess who viewed your profile?'' scams account for nearly half (45.5 per cent) of bait material, adding that these promises were more affective due to ''the lack of information regarding the features of social networks, as many users still believe there may be people gathering this data.''

The 5 most common Facebook scams:

1 of 5

1. Guess who viewed your profile (45.5 per cent)
2. Facebook functionality scams (29.53 per cent)
3. Giveaway scams (16.51 per cent )
4. Celebrity scams (7.53 per cent)
5. Atrocity videos (0.93 per cent)

The next most common scam (29.53 per cent) promised users increased functionality, playing again on their lack of know-how about Facebook's capabilities even as it promised them that by downloading this or that plug-in they would suddenly stand out from the ground.

Meanwhile, www.infosecurity-magazine.com reported cyber-criminals were increasingly turning to fake celebrity sex tapes and atrocity scams as bait to lure Facebook users into unwitting malware downloads, new research from Bitdefender suggested.

The Romanian security vendor had released findings from a two-year research project that analysed over 850,000 scams on the social network across the globe.

The findings pointed to the same old tricks being used time and again by attackers, with slight variations.

However, a more worrying aspect was the propensity for Facebook users to click on videos and links purporting to show celebrity sex tapes (7.5 per cent) and so-called 'atrocity videos.'

According to Bitdefender chief security strategist, Catalin Cosoi, like and share schemes using horrendous images, such as maimed animals, suffering children, and tortured women, now accounted for almost 1 per cent of all scams.

The latest example was a `malicious girl killed by her husband' video that had been infecting users with adware and malware, he added.

The security firm called on users to ensure their OS, anti-virus and software like Adobe was kept up-to-date to minimise the risk of vulnerabilities, which hackers could exploit. It also warned Facebook users against completing surveys, sharing or liking websites to view videos and installing updates requested by viral videos.