People in Connecticut are being warned about a scary trend of fake Facebook posts that are meant to get people to share personal information. Concerns are being raised by experts about scams that use made-up stories about a lost police officer and an abandoned baby that have been seen in different parts of the state.
More than one hundred people in Old Lyme shared a post on Monday saying that a police officer was missing. Many Facebook users, many of whom were worried and wanted to help, saw the post right away and replied. The post did not show up at all the next day, though. Instead, there was a different post that advertised a food distribution event and had a sketchy link connected to it.
A representative for the Better Business Bureau, Kristen Johnson, says this is a common way for scammers to get people’s attention before sending them to fake websites. Johnson says, “These scams often start with a sad story, like a child going missing or a police officer getting hurt, to get people to feel something.” “Once the post gets enough attention, the scammers change it to something completely different, like a contest or a real estate listing.” All of this is meant to trick you into clicking on links that could put your personal information at risk.
There have been Facebook scams like this before. Johnson says that they suddenly became very famous in 2022 and are now back with a vengeance. As soon as someone shares the post, it can quickly reach their friends. This lets hackers get personal information from many people. A lot of people don’t know how weak they are, and the information they share on Facebook could be used by bad people without them knowing.
In response to these scams, the Connecticut State Police have put out a statement to explain what really happened with the police officer jobs that went missing. “If there were any real emergencies involving law enforcement, we would use official channels to get the word out,” the department said. “An officer who goes missing is something we would tell the public about right away through official channels.”
State police said that fake posts like the one saying an officer was lost are often shared by con artists who want to get attention and trick people. The department also said that if someone sees a post that seems fishy, they should check the information before sharing it. One easy way to see if a post is real is to use Google Lens or do a reverse photo search to see if the picture is already online somewhere else. Most of the time, these searches will show that the post is fake.
The Fairfield Police Department’s Sergeant Jenna Wellington also warned people about a different but similar scam. People in the area were worried after seeing a post saying that a hurt baby had been left at the police station. In tweets like this, Wellington said, “there are a lot of red flags.” “First, you can’t get in touch with the police directly through the post.” There isn’t a public list of police officers or a simple way to find out what’s going on. Also, the pictures of the officers don’t always have identifying features like badges or patches, and comments are usually turned off so that people can’t ask questions.
Authorities from both the cops and the cyber world agree that patterns are one of the best ways to spot these scams. A real post about someone being missing or an emergency is generally shared by verified accounts and has links to official information. The fact that the same post is being shared in several places, even different states, is a strong sign that it’s a scam.
Experts say that people shouldn’t share posts until they can check the information in them. This will help keep them and their friends safe. Scammers use the fact that social media posts can go popular to get more people to see them. And the more shares a post has, the more likely it is that it will lead people to dangerous links.
People who have already shared these kinds of posts are being asked to take them down and tell Facebook that they are fake. There are tools on the social media giant that can help users spot and report scams, but users still need to be responsible to keep their own information safe.
Being careful is the best way to avoid falling for these scams, even though they can be scary. Check the information in any post before you click on it or share it. Being extra careful can help keep your personal information safe and keep you from falling for online scams.
