Hackers are selling Facebook accounts for a low cost to spamming groups that spread Malware.
Lately it has been found that hackers are starting to sell stolen Facebook accounts for a very low price to gangs that send millions of spam messages to computer users. These spamming gangs are sending spam messages that urge computer users to click on fake video or photo links within the message. Being able to use a stolen Facebook profile they can reach several users and flood their inboxes with these malicious messages in a sneaky way.
When you are the member of a social community such as Facebook or MySpace you automatically have a certain level of trust that people on your friends list send you legitimate messages. What if a hacker obtained your profile and sent out messages that included malware? You would probably become infected because you fell for this trick.
The hackers, who are selling these Facebook accounts, although for a small amount of money, are getting paid well. During the holiday season security researchers usually see an increase in this type of activity. Theft of social accounts is nothing new but it can reap serious consequences. Sometimes the theft of a social account may result in identity theft. In the case of identity theft credit card or banking account numbers may get stolen which results in the theft of millions of dollars over the course of several months each year.
Social Netoworking Tips
"We give away a huge amount of personal information on social networking sites", "Hordes of cyber criminals are drawn to them", says Trend Micro's Rik Ferguson. You must be aware that during the busy holiday shopping season we will see an increase in malicious activates over the internet. Several years ago all we had to worry about was getting your purse stolen or getting mugged by a criminal. Now the thieves have taken it to cyberspace where they keep their hands literally clean.
Remember to be cautions of any website that you visit and do not give out an abundance of personal information on any social networking site.
What social networks are you a part of? Do think that you give out too much personal information on social networks or just enough to keep your identity protected?