Question from Barbara: I know you’re always posting warnings about scams so I thought I’d ask you about something that’s going around Facebook right now.
I’ve been getting dozens of posts in my newsfeed that read like this:
“This is fun. We all need a laugh. 😂 Type “Barbara is my…”, then hit the middle word on your keyboard until it forms a sentence.
*Then copy, paste with your name.”
Lots of my friends are responding to these messages. Is it safe to respond to them? It looks really fun but I don’t want to get scammed somehow.
Rick’s answer: Barbara, it’s true that there numerous scams and hoaxes making the rounds on Facebook at all times, but I’m happy to say that this isn’t one of them.
This is one of those relatively rare instances in which a viral post is fun and entertaining, but not dangerous in any way.
I say that for the following reasons:
1 – There’s no link to click and no web page to visit, therefore there’s no risk of downloading malware onto your device.
2 – No personal or financial information is being solicited so there’s no risk of identity theft.
3 – You aren’t being asked to forward the post to all of your friends so there’s no risk of irritating multiple people by doing so.
4 – You’re not asked to provide any login information so there’s no risk of falling victim to a phishing attempt.
Bottom line: It pays to be extremely cautious when using Facebook and other social media sites, and I’m glad to see that you obviously are.
That being said, you can participate in this particular activity with no worries whatsoever because it isn’t some form of dangerous scam or irritating hoax.
To finish up, the video below offers an eye-opening look into the worlds of several real-life Internet scammers. I recommend that you check it out so you’ll know what to look out for.
Note: As always, you can watch the video at full screen by clicking the “square” icon that will pop up in the lower-right corner of the video after it begins playing.
