You’ve Won the Christmas Lottery … Not.

Like many millions of other email users out there, you’re probably familiar some way or another with 419 Nigerian fraud. You’ve probably seen a Nigerian email in one of its many different variants filter through to your email inbox or junk mail folder. 419 Nigerian fraud, or Advance Fee Fraud, most prolifically takes on the classic wealthy businessman variation, which promises several million dollars dumped into your bank account from some deceased businessmans banker or solicitor in Africa, providing your pay some sort of fee upfront, of course.

Not all 419 Nigerian fraud is that easy to spot however, and one particular variation that comes increasingly popular during the run up to Christmas is the 419 Christmas lottery scam. For the unaware and uninformed, receiving an email confirming you’ve won hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars is the perfect way to catch someone’s attention. After all, 5.6 million USD might just come in handy over the festive period!

These types of scams prey on people who need money, and  the Christmas period provides many such people who may be willing to believe stories they normally wouldn’t do any other time of the year.

So this is why we will see a surplus of apparent Christmas lotteries and sweepstakes filling our inboxes, trying to dupe people into biting.

Remember, even if the initial email asking you to “confirm” your winnings doesn’t mention fees or charges, follow up emails certainly will, and can range from courier fees, security clearance fees, handling fees, release fees and even bribes!

Examples this December include the Coca-Cola Zero Lottery and the Nigerian Xmas Lottery sweepstake.

Remember this – you cannot win lotteries you have not entered, and no credible lottery notifies its winners via email, much less requires upfront fees to collect winnings.

For our full article on advance fee 419 fraud and its many variants and methods of spotting it, click here.

Facebook Launches New Profile – Viral Rumours Soon to Follow

Facebook have recently announced the imminent launch of the new profile page, meaning your profile page is going to be restructured and ergo is going to look very different indeed.

New features will incorporate recently tagged photos of yourself appearing at the top of the profile page, a featured friends element allowing you to select your important friends (many potential arguments there, then) and more information about your hobbies, work etc. (sharing even more information with Facebook? They must enjoy irritating the hell out of privacy activists)

We’re telling you about this imminent change [-all users should have new profiles by the new year-] because every time Facebook does make any sort of change, hoaxers see this as some sort of starting whistle to spread as much illogical tripe as possible to see how far and deep their alarmist lies can spread across a network comprised largely of people far too familiar with their Copy & Paste keyboard shortcuts. (It’s Control + C and V for the sceptics)

So this post is a pre-emptive warning that soon the old favorites are likely to make an inevitable return, such as…

-Facebook groups, pages and applications that claim it can get your old profile back, providing you invite people to join, of course. Like all changes Facebook make, once their finalised, there is no reverting back.

-Viral messages stating Facebook has been hacked because of some sort of irrelevant and obscure feature some hoaxer has discovered. Remember the assertion your account could be hacked because your own name appeared on your list of friends? Prepare for the next viral “Facebook has been hacked” panic.

-Similar to the above point, we expect a new round of “Facebook hackers” to miraculously appear, magically comprising Facebook accounts based on the illogical pseudo-jargon garbage the hoaxers dream up.

-Facebook are planning on charging for upgrades. You really have to admire this rumours ability to simply refuse to lay down and die. Always popping up every few months, likely prompting Facebook’s message on their homepage that it will always be free. We expect to see a timely return of this classic at some point.

So Facebook are already altering many of its users to the new profile layout.

We can’t wait.

Think of any more rumours likely to follow? Feel free to comment below.

Facebook Cartoon Profile Pics Have NOTHING to do with Pedophillia !!

It rarely seems a month passes by without some sort of specious claims about pedophiles running riot on social networking sites, and this December is certainly no exception with yet another viral rumour hitting the Facebook.

It all started in November when messages started to appear in Greece and Cyprus requested people to change their Facebook profile pictures to their favorite cartoon characters. The messages didn’t enjoy much success, and seemed doomed to a quick demise.

That was until early December when the messages were picked up, translated into English and were altered into saying the changing of profile pictures to cartoon characters was a way of saying "No to child abuse", and the cartoon character you opted for should be an old favorite from that respective Facebook users own childhood.

The move seemed popular, and enjoyed even more success than the “Post Your Bra Color” and the “Doppelganger Pic” viral campaigns. Even though the movement did not seem to be attached to any official charity of group, many people were happy to change their profile pictures for a day, or even a week.

But as the saying goes, it only takes a few bad apples to spoil the bunch, and this is certainly true as to the unfortunate path this story has ended up taking. Only a few days after the messages and cartoon pictures went global did the sick and vile rumours of pedophile involvement begin to surface, and surface they certainly did.

Almost instantaneously did various rumours appear claiming the whole idea of cartoon profile pictures was created by social networking deviants who owned and operated dangerous groups designed to steal your children and rob their photos. Yet again the illogical rumours led you to believe that pedophiles invented the idea of cartoon profile pictures in order to be accepted as friends to your children.

Yet again the rumours made no sense, offered no evidence and defied even the most basic principles of common sense.

And yet again people passed the rumours on in their thousands.

This includes rumours like -

ATTENTION! Just reported that the group that started the post about changing your profile picture to a cartoon character is actually a pedophiles group that is doing this because its easier to get accepted friend requests! Please re-post.

and

CHANGEYOUPRFILE PIC BACK TO NORMAL!! this cartoon thing has been set up by pedos using a registered charity thing to entice kids. Apparently on the 6th of december you will be kicked of fb if u hv cartoon pics. the more folk that put up the cartoon pics the harder it is for the police ...to catch the sickos!!!

Suffice to say, the rumours were not true AT ALL, and if you feel like changing your profile picture to an old favorite cartoon, whether it be to support child abuse awareness or simply to revisit nostalgia-town, feel free to do so in the comfort and safety of knowing you’re not allowing, supporting or endorsing any paedophilic related activity.

If you want more on the subject, here is our original post on Facebook pedophiles.