Facebook scam exploits attention given to 'video calling'

Mere days after Facebook announced its new video chat feature, cybercriminals have already come out with an app exploiting it. Computer security firm Sophos reported Saturday (Manila time) the scam exploited the media attention given to the new feature. "I am sure this won't be the last scam targeting folks who wish to use Facebook's new service. Never download executables or other content proclaiming to enable the service," Sophos Canada senior security adviser Chester Wisniewski said in a blog post. Wisniewski said victims of this first scam exploiting the video-calling feature should count themselves lucky it only spams their friends to take a survey where the criminals earn referral fees. He said the scam asks users for personal information, the ability to post messages to their wall, read their posts and to do all of this at any time. "What is clever about this one is that if it were true that Facebook Video Chat was an application, you might be more easily convinced to approve the application to have more liberal permissions," he said. "Strange, if it were a video calling app it would presumably only need to access my data when I am using it, right?" he added. He advised users not to click on wall posts referencing "Enable video calls." — LBG, GMA News