SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — Have you heard of farcing?
If not, you need to know about it. It is a social media scam, and it is easy to fall for. That friend of a friend just might be a cyber criminal trying to steal your identity.
Farcing has gotten so bad the United States government just sent out this warning reminding people that a “friend of a friend” might be a scammer.
Really aggressive identity thieves are using sites like Facebook, Google Plus, and LinkedIn to ensnare victims.
Social media is all about connecting with new people, and this farcing scam takes advantage of that. It starts when you receive a friend request from someone who supposedly shares mutual friends with you.
Once you accept the request, the scammers search your online profile to collect personal data about you, such as your hometown, schools you attended, employers, names of family members, your address, vacation spots.
They want anything they can use to help them steal your identity and gain access to your financial information.