Facebook and emails are being flooded with scams claiming to show you death videos and photos of Osama Bin Laden since his death. FBI is warning people to be ware of these sort of emails and Facebook posts because they contain viruses that can seriously damage your computer. Once your computer is affected with this virus, it starts spreading to all people in your contact lists, affecting your friend’s and associate’s computers.
According to Sophos, an anti-virus software developer, Some Google searches related to Osama automatically directs users to Web sites offering malicious software. The bad links falsely alert users that their computer may be infected and that they should download virus-scanning software, which are usually virus itself.
One of the Facebook posts appeared to be from BBC comes with a link titled “Osama bin Laden Killed (LIVE VIDEO).” Clicking on this link takes the user to an external web page that looks like Facebook, asking the user to enter a verification code. Once the user submits the code, the malicious link is posted on their Facebook wall and spread to all their friends automatically.
Please be extra careful when you are searching for images of Osama as the virus is spreading world wide. Some of the scammers even steal credit card numbers, user account details, passwords, etc. through phishing.
Following are some of the tips to users from FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center to prevent being affected by these scams:
- Adjust the privacy settings on social networking sites you frequent to make it more difficult for people you know and do not know to post content to your page. Even a “friend” can unknowingly pass on multimedia that’s actually malicious software.
- Do not agree to download software to view videos. These applications can infect your computer.
- Read e-mails you receive carefully. Fraudulent messages often feature misspellings, poor grammar, and nonstandard English.
- Report e-mails you receive that purport to be from the FBI. Criminals often use the FBI’s name and seal to add legitimacy to their fraudulent schemes. In fact, the FBI does not send unsolicited e-mails to the public. Should you receive unsolicited messages that feature the FBI’s name, seal, or that reference a division or unit within the FBI or an individual employee, report it to the Internet Crime Complaint Center by clicking here.
Some of the samples of the scams spreading on Facebook from Sophos.com:
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