FREE GAME COINS ARE REALLY TEMPTING WHEN YOU ARE REALLY BROKE!
You see advertisements for 'free game coins' all the time, but never does it capture your attention more, than when you are downright coin-poor.
Their ads scatter the word "Free" everywhere and while there is no monetary outlay, you are giving something away that's valuable.
To get the "free coins" all you need to do is share their Page on your timeline, give the Page your LIKE, and comment with certain words a few times, and for all that, in addition to 'free coins,' you are given a chance to win the latest model Apple iPhone!
You tell yourself it's a piece of cake, that you can definitely do this.
Well join the club. The Scammed club, that is.
Their ads scatter the word "Free" everywhere and while there is no monetary outlay, you are giving something away that's valuable.
To get the "free coins" all you need to do is share their Page on your timeline, give the Page your LIKE, and comment with certain words a few times, and for all that, in addition to 'free coins,' you are given a chance to win the latest model Apple iPhone!
You tell yourself it's a piece of cake, that you can definitely do this.
Well join the club. The Scammed club, that is.
Every day there are thousands of Scam Facebook Pages that promise a chance of winning an expensive or hard to get item and all you have to do is follow a few easy steps to qualify.
An example of the steps are:
- LIKE their Facebook Page
- SHARE their posts numerous times
- JOIN their Facebook group
- RECRUIT your friends to LIKE their site
- FOLLOW them on social media sites
The itemized steps should be the first Red Flag telling you that the Page isn't legitimate. Beware of any Page or website that advertises they are giving away cash or expensive prizes just for liking, commenting and sharing their Page.
PEAK SEASONS
Believe it or not, there are times when Scam Pages are more active. During high traffic seasons like Spring Break, Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter holidays, these Hoaxes and Scam Pages gain a little more momentum and players start seeing more of them in their sidebars and newsfeeds.
We aren't saying that college kids are the Scammers.
Quite the opposite. Many of them are the ones who are being scammed. That's because they believe the advertising is truthful when it says completing "a few easy steps" will get the much coveted item for them.
FOR FREE.
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| You may remember a Name Brand Giveaway before you remember exactly who is giving it away. Always look to see who is sponsoring the contest. See if they have a Facebook Page. Then, go see if your LIKE is on it. |
NOTHING is ever 100% FREE.
The Scam Page's goal is to get as many LIKES as they can for their Scam Page.
This is called LIKE FARMING. They get the LIKES by attracting followers through dishonest or manipulative ways.
Advertising an item that doesn’t exist is typical of Scam Pages.
The high amount of traffic to the Page makes the Page popular to Google. When users enter the key words "Free Coins" in searches, the Pages with the most LIKES will be listed in the first 100 results. Google doesn't care or pay attention to whether it is a Scam Page or a legitimate Page.
LIKE FARMING is one of the most dangerous types of Scams on Facebook because the Scam Page Owner gains access to certain information about you, for example:
- Your IP (Internet Provider) address (reveals your location),
- Your email address (to notify you of new posts, or to confirm your identity),
- Your Facebook login details (there is no reason for you to share this info with anyone)
- Access to your Facebook friends list (it's so they can be recruited to LIKE the Scam Page too),
Following steps on Scam Pages will put you and your friends at risk.
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HOW THEY WORK
Scam Facebook Pages gather large numbers of LIKES the fastest way possible.
The Scammers require that users keep sharing the Page which gets it more publicity, which increases their LIKES and gives them opportunity to scam more victims.
Once the Page has collected a large number of LIKES, the Page enjoys popularity. Some Scam Pages want you to click a link to confirm your identity, or to get the offered free coins.
The link is what you need to be careful of because it gathers information about you, your login and IP address.
Users are told that an email address is usually required to collect the free coins and to verify a user's identity.
Before you enter your email address, before you confirm your identity, before you click a link to take you elsewhere -- this is your last chance to turn back, to exit, to untangle yourself from the Scam Page.
FACEBOOK'S TERMS OF SERVICE
The Pages running contests that require users to share a post or tag a few Friends are against Facebook’s Terms of Service for Pages. Given how common these are, and the fact that they are still doing business on Facebook, it's clear that Facebook is not policing them because the Pages are still getting away with running their Scams.
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WHY ARE THESE SCAM PAGES DANGEROUS?
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Besides your private information being known to people who have no business being privy to it, many of the people who fall for these Scams end up getting Hacked. How many times have you seen dozens of SHARES on a hacked account's timeline?
The shares are almost always for Scam Pages.
Experienced Scammers use their Page to front other types of Scams.
Pages with high numbers of LIKES can be sold on the black market to other Scammers.
Putting them out of business is easier said than done. They are like rabbits. As soon as one Scam Page is taken down, ten more appear in its place.
The Scam is dangerous because it goes round and round - from you to your friends and to their friends. If you have 5000 friends and some of your friends who shared it also have 5000 friends ..... the Page can enjoy a long life because as long as someone is sharing it, there is no end in sight.
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