Facebook Charging In 2011: Chain Letter Spreads False Rumor (PICTURES)

Is Facebook about to start charging its users to access the social network? No, but a new chain letter making its way across Facebook walls wants you to think so.

This rumor follows Facebook's recent f8 conference in San Francisco, where the company announced sweeping changes to its Open Graph platform, allowing more sharing than ever before. During the event, Facebook also unveiled a radical new profile layout that will significantly change the look of users' personal pages.

The chain letter claiming Facebook will begin charging this year alleges that the site must charge its users a fee to pay for the new profile design.

The phony warning reads thus:

IT IS OFFICIAL. IT WAS EVEN ON THE NEWS. FACEBOOK WILL START CHARGING DUE TO THE NEW PROFILE CHANGES. IF YOU COPY THIS ON YOUR WALL YOUR ICON WILL TURN BLUE AND FACEBOOK WILL BE FREE FOR YOU. PLEASE PASS THIS MESSAGE ON, IF NOT YOUR ACCOUNT WILL BE DELETED IF YOU DO NOT PAY

Take a look at the chain letter, in the form of a Facebook post (below), courtesy of Sophos's Naked Security blog.

Sophos's Graham Cluley calls the rumor "poppycock." Writes Cluley, "Facebook doesn't need to charge you to use Facebook, it's making plenty of money already by allowing advertisers to reach its 800 million users."

We've heard similar rumors in the past, all equally untrue. A nearly identical rumor, falsely claiming Facebook would begin charging and deleting free accounts, spread virally on the heels of Facebook's announcement of a Skype-powered video chat feature.

Whenever doubts arise in users' minds about whether Facebook will remain free, they have only to check out Facebook's login page, where the company asserts the following: "It's free and always will be."

LOOK:

Fortunately, the most harm you can do by posting this current rumor is to further misinform your fellow Facebookers. However, scams periodically surface on the social network, and unsuspecting users who fall for them can end up spamming all their friends, or worse. Take a look at the 9 Facebook scams to watch out for (below), a slideshow which originally appeared here.

• Clickjacking

  Clickjackers on Facebook entice users to copy and paste text into their browser bar by posting too-good-to-be-true offers and eye-catching headlines. Once the user infects his own computer with the malicious code, the clickjackers can take control of his account, spam his friends and further spread their scam. For example, clickjacking schemes hit Facebook soon after bin Laden's death and spread like wildfire by purporting to offer users a glimpse at <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/04/bin-laden-death-video-hoax_n_857730.html" target="_hplink">video or photos of bin Laden's death</a>.

• Fake Polls Or Questionnaires

  If you click on an ad or a link that takes you to questionnaire on a site outside Facebook, it's best to close the page. When you complete a fake quiz, you help a scammer earn commission. Sometimes the quiz may ask you to enter your mobile number before you can view your results. If the scammers get your number, they could run up charges on your account.

• Phishing Schemes

  Phishers go after your credentials (username, password and sometimes more), then take over your profile, and may attempt to gain access to your other online accounts. Phishing schemes can be difficult to spot, especially if the scammers have set up a page that resembles Facebook's login portal.

• Phony Email Or Message

  <a href="http://www.facebook.com/help/?page=1187" target="_hplink">Facebook warns</a> users to be on the lookout for emails or messages from scammers masquerading as "The Facebook Team" or "Facebook." These messages often suggest "urgent action" and may ask the user to update his account. They frequently contain links to malware sites or virus-ridden attachments. They may even ask for your username and password. The best advice Facebook offers is to report the sender and delete the messages without clicking anything.

• Money Transfer Scam

  If a friend sent you a desperate-sounding Facebook chat message or wall post asking for an emergency money transfer, you'd want to help, right? Naturally. That's what makes this scam so awful. The point is to get you to wire money to scammers via Western Union or another transfer service.

• Fake Friend Request

  Not all <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/10/facebook-friend-request-spam_n_821584.html?page=1" target="_hplink">friend requests</a> come from real people, despite Facebook's safeguards against bots. Some Facebook accounts exist purely to establish broad connections for spamming or extracting personal data from users, so watch out whose friend requests you accept.

• Fake Page Spam

  Malicious pages, groups or event invitations aim to trick the user into performing actions that Facebook considers "abusive." For instance, a fake invite might offer a prize if you forward it to all your friends or post spammy content on their walls. Sometimes a scammer will set up fake pages as a front for a clickjacking or phishing scheme.

• Rogue Apps

  Malicious apps are pretty common on Facebook these days. They can be a cover for phishing, malware, clickjacking or money transfer schemes. Oftentimes, the apps look convincingly real enough for users to click "Allow," as they would do with a normal Facebook app. However, rogue apps use this permission to spread spam through your network of friends. For example, the recent "<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/08/facebook-closing-accounts-scam-app_n_846737.html" target="_hplink">Facebook Shutdown</a>" scam spread by claiming that Facebook would delete all inactive accounts except those that confirmed via app installation.

• The Koobface Worm

  The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koobface" target="_hplink">Koobface worm</a> is getting on in years (it first appeared in late 2008) and has been mostly scrubbed from the site, but Facebook still warns users to look out for it. Koobface spreads across social networks like Facebook via posts containing a link that claims to be an Adobe Flash Player update. Really, the link downloads malware that will infect your computer, hijack your Facebook profile and spam all your friends with its malicious download link. This worm affects mostly Windows users.

Comments

[Donald Haney]

09:35 AM on 11/09/2011

People sometimes are very easily changed to other post that Facebook does not or will they ever charge for there services. They make alot of money from there supporters it is the best way to promote your product adversties on Facebook. So, if it is not from facebook and they don't give you information to contact them to discuss the change then don't worry.
Big Dog. USMC

[zombywulf]

02:35 AM on 11/09/2011

This story is so old, I can't believe even a RepubliCON would believe it

[Edward Current]

07:04 PM on 11/08/2011

Note to all idiots out there: Anytime you receive an e-mail that has any kind of scare AND insists that you pass the message on or else, either delete the e-mail -- or, if you must pass it on ("better safe than sorry, right?"), please then promptly kill yourself so you don't pass on your genes. Thank you.

[Jessica J89]

07:36 PM on 09/29/2011

What the heck with these constant changes lately! My friends are trying G+ and Sharelendar now. They say G+ is like FB and Sharelenda­r is for 'everyday' friends. If FB will not listen to us,they will be soon be ForgottenBook!

[Hunter Robbins]

11:27 AM on 09/28/2011

It never ceases to amaze and amuse me just how ridiculously stupid people can be to fall for things like this.

Then again, we do that the Tea Party.

[MVPost]

12:13 AM on 09/28/2011

Funny how much weight the words "it was even on the news" gives it. When I saw it in my feed it made me question for at least a few seconds if such a thing could really happen. Even with alternatives, I think many people are socially attached so conveniently with Facebook that they would pay to preserve that connection, at least in the short run. But newcomers would simply choose a free social networking service. Charging people isn't the path to profitability for Facebook, but it does raise the question of what the monetary worth of a person's page is, and who or rather who should own it.

[raoulhubris]

11:27 PM on 09/27/2011

Did you hear? Facebook is separating into two companies. The likes and The unlikes.

[Imzadi]

06:08 PM on 09/27/2011

All users of FB should far more concerned about the PAC that was just created by FB.

It's not too late to cancel....

[Ded Peasant]

04:38 PM on 09/27/2011

Now I have to ask when FB sends out a notification to go get the devils implant chip or they are going to charge, are we going to be overwhelmed at hospitals with morons trying to get one?

[cuoi]

03:13 PM on 09/27/2011

All Facebook users are linked to NSA in Virginia in real time. Their web camera is turned on remotely and subliminal messages are flashed at regular intervals. Doh! I just became a webcam.

[cuoi]

03:07 PM on 09/27/2011

Years ago I got some deal abut a free Honda if you passed it on. I looked at 5 MB of the distribution list...A really big deal in email of yesteryear...

[Kirsten555]

12:32 PM on 09/27/2011

My aunt posted this the other day. I only find these rumor spam things a problem from my more computer and internet illiterate friends, which, not to stereotype, tend to be my older friends. (thankfully not my Dad, he's very internet savvy) Seems most people who use the internet frequently, are younger, or been using it longer usually don't fall trap to these.

[cuoi]

03:06 PM on 09/27/2011

They wouldn't circulate it if it weren't true~

[no no]

11:22 AM on 09/27/2011

The worst is when it's your pc illiterate family members from around the country start passing this on, knowing it might be a hoax and say "well it doesnt hurt to try". I just want to slap these people. YES IT DOES HURT. Quit forwarding junk and acting like "no harm no foul" if it's fake. Thats how all this crap gets started in the first place.

[Jack Daniels Esq]

10:29 AM on 09/27/2011

I remember Bill Gates was sending everyone $325 for trying the new IE - dummies

[musicmasterno1]

07:17 AM on 09/27/2011

Facebook is scary. They now use facial recognition software to scan your photos and match them up with any of the OTHER 799,999,999 users to suggest friends. That is some SERIOUS "Big Brother" stuff and I don't like it. That kind of technology used unchecked in the private sector can be an extremely dangerous thing.

Unlike the topic of the article, this is NOT a rumor. It's Facebook fact and it is very disturbing.

[Mrsbean54]

07:28 AM on 09/27/2011

Yeah, I thought that was extremely creepy as well. Fortunately, you do have an "opt out" option for that. It's only one of many questionable Facebook practices...if they continue on this track without opt out options, I guarantee in the next couple years a better FB equivalent will come along. With any luck the free market will not force us to go social-networkless if we want privacy options.

[dennishastings]

11:25 AM on 09/27/2011

Yes, in my book (without a face), Facebook is right in line with many of the information gathering systems that Dick Cheney put into action.

I don't have any photos of myself in my profile. I also listed a fake religion, fake political affiliation, and my other profile data is filled in with other phony data as well. I say that I'm a musician. That's about it.

It IS useful. The basic premise is a good one. But all the data collection is being done for other reasons than to just 'connect' you to new 'friends'. It's great for telling people about upcoming gigs. There are some people who defend every aspect of the service without question. I find that a little disturbing.