231 days

Helen A.S. Popkin

Spamming Facebook friends just got more embarrassing

You're never going to get free airline tickets simply by clicking a link on Facebook and accepting a third-party app — not from JetBlue, not from Delta Airlines, and not from the latest airline name to be abused by social network scammers, Southwest Airlines.

Yet such viral scams persist on Facebook because Facebook users continue to click malicious links. Over the last year, Facebook stepped up its defenses against these seemingly unstoppable pests, sending warning prompts to users and partnering with Web of Trust, a crowdsourced website rating community. Today, the world's largest social network further enforced its spam defenses by partnering with security firm Websense, which will help protect and educate Facebook users via its bad link database.

"Starting today, Websense technology will add to Facebook's existing protections to stop users from clicking on links without knowing the trustworthiness of the destination," Dan Hubbard, Websense chief technology officer, said in a media statement. "When a Facebook user clicks on a link it will be checked against the Websense database. If Websense determines the link is malicious, the user will see a page that offers the choice to continue at their own risk, return to the previous screen or get more information on why it was flagged as suspicious."

Google Chrome and Twitter use similar warning systems, and as the handy Websense flowchart above reveals, you're still responsible for using the good sense the Lord gave a chicken. So if you're clicking a link and get a prompt that tells you the link might not be safe, don't click on it.

If you do succumb to your overwhelming desire to get those free airline tickets or the possibility of seeing Justin Bieber embarrass himself, you'll likely be asked to accept a third-party app. Accept it and you've just spammed all your friends with the same bad link. You might find yourself sent to an outside website where you'll be asked to take a survey. Either way, no free tickets or photo documentation of Justin Bieber humiliations are forthcoming.

To review, here are some things you can safely assume you won't see via Facebook: Osama bin Laden's body, that video of that thing Justin Bieber did to that girl, what happened when that girl's dad walked in on her, an app that reveals who has been looking at your profile, or any "authentic" message from Facebook WRITTEN IN ALL CAPS.

If you do get sucked in to this or any Facebook spam scam, it's easy to remove the application, using Facebook settings, so that it no longer accesses your profile. Here's how:

• Remove any content the rogue app may have posted on your Facebook wall.
• Go to the Account Settings drop-down menu in the upper right side of your screen.
• From the Account Settings drop-down menu, choose Privacy Settings.
• On the bottom right side of the Privacy Settings Page, click the Apps & websites link "Edit your settings."
• On the App page, next to "Apps you use," select edit settings.
• There you will see the third-party apps that have access to your Facebook profile. Delete any rogue applications. (It's a good idea to check this setting regularly, anyway.)
• Send an apology to all your Facebook friends who may have been tagged, and advise them to do the same.
• Join Facebook's Security page as well as the Sophos security page on Facebook to stay up to date on the latest security issues.

More on the annoying way we live now:

• How to stop Spotify from embarrassing you on Facebook
• Man steals $57K from neighbors using their Facebook info
• Facebook hacker posts stolen pics on porn site

Helen A.S. Popkin goes blah blah blah about the Internet. Tell her to get a real job on Twitter and/or Facebook. Also, Google+.