SPARTANBURG, S.C. – We’re keeping tabs on the scams you need to know about and there are a few new ones that have popped up on social media.
Here’s a rundown of how to spot the hacks.
USC Upstate student, Matthew Burt, is getting a degree in software development, so when a friend needed his tech help, he had good advice.
He says,”To stay safe verify that the page is real. You can do that in a number of ways. For major businesses, they’re going to have a check mark. Also, look for the number of followers and the number of tweets.”
Then there’s the latest click-bait scams.
A recent news feed post claims that Will Smith’s son committed suicide. The shocking article lures many to click, and then sends out posts to your friends to spread faster.
Facebook user, Nicole Dennis, says, “I clicked it, I thought it was like an article, but then it was like, can we have permission, so then I was like NO. So that’s why I was like, everyone is clicking it and so it’s making statuses for them.”
Also, watch out for the Tiny House contest.
Clicking “like” to win is only a way for the site to gain popularity before it changes into something different.
Kevin Hodge of USC Upstate’s IT department says, “They have gained that trust illegitimately and then have changed the page to something completely different so it’s a cycle that’s just, that’s not going to end.”
One more online scam to watch out for, especially right now in the thick of football season, is the bogus live stream video offer.
Scammers comment on the Facebook page of a sports team with a link where people can watch a live-stream for free, but the links lead to fake websites that ask for personal information.
