As a digital marketer and social media entrepreneur, I’ve come across a number of scammers that spread spammy links and bogus news in order to steal personal information, hack accounts, and even fool consumers.
If you’re a regular Facebook user, you’ve probably gotten messages from people asking for your account password and username so they can activate a free Facebook browsing trick for you. It’s possible that your buddies will ask you to click a specific link, which could then hijack your account.
What about our email accounts’ spam folders?
Gmail does its best to protect you from scammers by filtering emails. However, some of them are clever enough to get through this protection barrier and send you messages saying that your Facebook account has been hijacked and that you must click an activation link to retrieve it.
More specifically, WhatsApp and Telegram have become one of the most popular social media platforms for fraudulent accounts and users, with messages requesting that you click a link to get free 50GB data and more, as well as messages requesting that you click a link to get free cash or giveaways, and so on.
5 Ways To Detect Fraudulent Links Online
Below are the five confirmed ways that you can follow to identify fraudulent links on the internet:
1. Examine the Source
Imagine someone you don’t know on your contact list who has never spoken to you before sending you a message to click a link for a promo or deal, and you obliviously click because you believe they only want the best for you. That would be a huge error. Examine the link’s origin. Check to see if you know them or if you’ve spoken with them before. Before you proceed, check their accounts to see whether they are legitimate.
2. Pose Serious Questions
If a fraudster is attempting to get you to click a link, they will most likely use deception. Solicit answers from someone else. Quote the message given to you on your WhatsApp status or Facebook wall, and ask your friends if they’ve gotten similar messages and how legitimate they are.
3. Run A Quick Check
If the message is a news story you saw on Twitter or Facebook, go to trusted sources and well-known news platforms like Punch, Daily Trust, and The Cable. Look through their platform or do a search to see if there are any similar stories.
4. Have A Second Look At The Link Before Clicking
While this isn’t an indication that link shorteners are spammy, it is vital to take a second look at a shortened link before clicking. Bloggers and digital marketers can use shortened links to track their activities, but scammers can use them to hide their original connections. Links beginning with bit.ly, t.co, and other similar suffixes are examples.
5. Delete Links You Aren’t Sure Of
Finally, if you have any doubts about the legitimacy of a post or link that appears to be primarily positive, disregard it. Take the measures outlined, and if they fail those checks, stay away, delete the message, and, if possible, block the sender. Keep yourself protected and secure.
This information was first published on nyscinfo.com. DMCA PROTECTED.
Source: Nyscinfo