Computer security specialists warn that Facebook users have been hit with a series of data-theft attacks in the past week as cyber crooks increasingly stalk social-networking Web sites.
Facebook has become prime hunting ground for tricksters and malicious software spreaders because it is the leading social-networking community, with more than 175 million people sharing personal information.
“There are so many people on social-networking sites it is becoming profitable for bad guys to go there,” said David Perry, global director of education at software security firm Trend Micro. “Bad guys can see all the things you post. You may be revealing personal information that is extremely valuable.”
Even seemingly innocent information posted on profile pages can sometimes provide opportunities for criminals. For example, names of grandparents or pets in posted pictures can tip hackers off to answers for typical challenge questions asked before providing information about “forgotten passwords” to online accounts.
Hackers can try to infect software used at social-networking Web sites with malicious code as well as dupe people in the trust-based communities with fake messages and rigged mini-applications.
“We have a rogue application that happened this weekend,” Trend Micro research manager Jamz Yaneza said on Monday.
Applications installed by Facebook users sent messages to their friends warning that the Web site was shutting down or that they had been reported for violating terms of service.
If people followed instructions in the bogus messages, software was installed on their computers that stole information and sent similar messages to their friends.
The most recent attack came in the form of messages claiming to be from friends that wanted to share digital video of the receivers.
Clicking on the link results in a prompt to download viewing software that is actually a computer worm called Koobface, a variation on the spelling of Facebook.
“It steals your cookie on your desktop; not just for Facebook but for a half-dozen social networking Web sites including MySpace,” Yaneza said. “Your account is compromised at that point. Using the hijacked cookie it tries to log in as you, goes through your address book and starts posting messages and comments.”
People can reduce the odds of becoming victims by being selective about friends at social networking Web sites and not clicking on links that take them outside the walls of their online communities.
Computer users are also wise to use unique complex passwords for each online account, Yaneza said.
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