Funny Facebook video scam

A new security warning has been issued lately regarding Facebook video scam. Essentially, if you happen to see a video of a woman taking off her underwear on a webcam, stop right there. As exciting as it might sound, it is not anywhere close to funny. This Facebook video scam infects users with a Trojan that can seriously jeopardize system security. It shows that before clicking anything on Facebook or any other social networking website, one has to be sure that the link or the ad has come from a reliable source; otherwise it spells nothing but trouble.

The new Facebook video scam is said to be distributing Albanian malware. Clicking the aforementioned video link eventually leads to downloading a Trojan onto the target computer. Based on security research, the Trojan is classified as Trojan.Agent.BDYV. This infection drops an archive file onto the system, and the file is password-protected. Just like many other Trojans out there, the one from Facebook video scam is here to steal personal data. In some cases, it may even take over the default browser. Needless to say, that such behavior clearly proves that Trojans appear and take over systems to steal users’ money.

The so-called “funny Facebook video scam” is not the first one in line. There have been several similar scams so far. For example, one of the variations of Dorkbot malware has been detected to spread via Facebook’s chat windows in May 2013. Also, this January yet another video scam was revealed. It was called “Rest in Peace” scam because it would promote videos about a celebrity’s death, consequently redirecting users to unreliable websites that distribute malware. Hence, it is easy to see that the newest Albanian scam is nothing exclusive, but it does not mean that users should ignore it.

One of the main reasons why users fall for this Facebook video scam is that on their dashboard it looks like the video has been shared by one of their friends. According to security researchers, the infection manages to make such an impression when they infect one of the users. It simply accesses user’s profile information to infect more of his or her friends, and then literally sends itself to another batch of potential victims. What is more with Trojan.Agent.BDYV it might be even impossible to delete the infection’s posts from your timeline – that is how intrusive it is.

The scammers have worked hard for their plan to fall through. Security specialists say that the created more than 20,000 unique URL addresses. It means that even if you blacklist some of the URLs, you cannot really escape them all. What is more, Facebook video scam makes an impression that the YouTube video one is supposed to watch has more than a million views. It makes the entire thing look rather legitimate and authentic. Therefore, it is obvious why a big number of excited Facebook users fall for the scam. If that were not enough, by clicking the link to the video Facebook users might even expose their friends to the infection.

There is no other way to avoid the “funny Facebook video scam” but to steer clear from similar video links you see on your news feed. A Trojan is not an adware application or potentially unwanted program that can be removed without any difficulties. Unfortunately, Trojans can only be removed by licensed antimalware applications or experienced computer users. This calls for investment in a reliable computer security application that would help you run regular system check-ups. Facebook video scam is not the only potential danger out there, so you have to be prepared to fight back 24/7.