Security firm Sophos has warned Facebook users of a new scam that puts a fake “dislike” button onto pages in order to install malware on their machines.
Facebook features a “like” button that allows users to express their taste for a certain page, but there is no “dislike” button. Instead, hackers are publishing “dislike” buttons on their own.
The virus actually disguises itself as an application allows users to press a “dislike” button. However, once this app gains a user’s permission, it spreads spam and connects to a user’s friends’ accounts.
“Falling for any of these scams (which promise some lurid or eye-popping or exclusive content) typically trick you into giving a rogue Facebook application permission to access your profile, posting spam messages from your account and asking you to complete an online survey,” Sophos warns.
“If you do give the app permission to run, it silently updates your Facebook status to promote the link that tricked you in the first place, thus spreading the message virally to your Facebook friends and online contacts.”
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
