If you’re a Facebook user and you haven’t met a cybercriminal yet; hang in there – you will. Survey after survey continue to show that cybercriminals are picking off Facebook users as if they were shooting fish in a barrel.
Most cybercriminal schemes on Facebook are outrageous. But the bad guys know, that even the most outrageous schemes stand a better than average chance of being successful when targeted at Facebook’s largely unaware, and unsophisticated, user base.
With the collaborative effort announced today by Facebook and Web of Trust, WOT will now provide protection against dubious and malicious web links, that Facebook users continue to be exposed to. When a Facebook user clicks a link that leads to a page with a poor reputation rating as defined by the WOT community, Facebook will show a clear warning message.
Click on graphic to expand to original.
The plan is to roll out to US users 100% on May 12, and then the following week, after the translators have time to finish their work, roll out globally.
A quick reminder:
WOT’s Browser add-on users see reputation icons on Web sites, Google search results, email links, Twitter, as well as shortened URLs. WOT ratings are recalculated every 30 minutes to ensure users have the freshest and most reliable information. The free WOT add-on works in all web browsers and can be downloaded here.
You can read a full review on the benefits of adding WOT to your Browser here on this site – WOT (Web of Trust) – Is It The Most Important Browser Security Add-on You Need To Install?
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Bill Mullins' Weblog - Tech Thoughts 
Amen and thanxs
Hey Louis,
Let’s hope the uninitiated pay attention. 🙂
Bill
Good news for computer support people ~ charging $80/hr fee to tell your average facebook user that the “pretty coloured rings” are a feature… 🙂
Hi Michael,
$80 an hour – gotta get me one of those jobs! 🙂
Best,
Bill
i have been using wot for a few weeks, and i like the way it rates sites ahead of time and gives me the option to open a risky site after being warning. it good to be able to scan down the page of a search and at a glance know if the sites can be trusted. if i were to be asked about it i would highly recommend it.
Hey Kenneth,
Glad to hear that you’re using WOT. It definitely makes for a safer surfing experience.
Bill
I read a left-wing online uk newspaper & (quite appropriately) it’s marked with a red ring – including all links inside it. It’s just people from the ‘right’ who’re slamming it
You’ve got to interpret the results – it’s good to know ‘we’ are making the people who own the keys to the Kingdom a little nervous !
Hi Michael,
Interesting.
I’ve yet to read an analysis (and there may well be one), on the “scareafying” factor that western governments should be assessing vis-a-vis the “take back my government and my country” movements, now underway in the Mid East. I’m assuming that they view their own levels of corruption as acceptable.
Best,
Bill
Please post a link for that or email me with it Mr Bill
Hi Michael,
Well, I haven’t found an article like that – but, I keep on looking. When I find it, I’ll pass it on.
Best,
Bill
Hey Bill,
I am currently trying to fix a friend’s computer which refuses to boot. I know they are Facebook users, as well as letting all and sundry use the computer. I know once I get it booted, I can expect to find zillions of nasty programs on it. I tried to warn them months ago, and now this is the result of not listening. I am going to fix it once, and then if it happens again, no more.
All I have to do is hook up a new CD ROM, because as well as the computer being stuffed, the CD don’t work lol.
Cheers
Hey Mal,
You’re a bear for punishment. 🙂
I’m with you – one chance, and then it’s get out the cheque book time.
Best,
Bill
Hi Bill,
This is a great coup for WOT and a very decent improvement for Facebook. I’ve got a few friends on Facebook who get hacked with regularity, in every case they’re older users who never cared about computers until they where dragged kicking and screaming into the modern world. These people are exactly the type to fall for a reasonably planned social engineering scheme.
Take care.
Mark
Hi Mark,
Definitely a coup for WOT. And, as you point out a “very decent improvement for Facebook”. Better late than never, but you have to wonder why it took all this time.
Social engineering really is a curse – especially for users newly introduces to computing, as you say. I find it all very depressing.
Best,
Bill
That’s good news. I’ve gotten to the point where I refuse to click on links because of all the malware. Not a day goes by when someone is being hijacked by these links and end up posting them to my wall. I would say it’s an epidemic. I keep telling people not to click but…well, you know the rest.
Hey G,
Epidemic covers it quite nicely.
I had one last week from a friend in India – just paste this piece of JavaScript into your browser. Yeah right, I’ll get right to that. It just keeps on getting worse and worse, huh?
Best,
Bill
I worded that wrong. I didn’t mean Malware. I meant to say malicious link (although I’m sure the link could lead to malware).
Hey G,
I gotcha.
Best,
Bill
Bill,
I’m with you on applauding this news. You’re right that “Facebook’s largely unaware, and unsophisticated, user base” is in need of any and all help in protecting them from the bad guys…and themselves. Hmmm, I’m wondering if they’ll click on those questionable sites anyway. It wouldn’t surprise me.
Best,
Paul
Hi Paul,
“and themselves” – nice catch! That’s what it’s really all about. There’s not a safety system in the world that will protect users against themselves – there are no magic bullets.
Hopefully, having WOT on board with Facebook will, over time, raise the awareness level. But, you’re right – there will be those who will continue to click, click, click. Sad really.
Best,
Bill
Thanks for this article, Bill. It’s always interesting when you receive a notification from Facebook that says someone you haven’t talked to in forever has posted on your wall – I often find that it’s only spam! I think it’s become easier for the average user to identify Facebook scams, but it will be helpful to receive a warning!
Hey Tuneup,
I’d like to believe that Facebook users are becoming interested (rather than disinterested), in security – but I’m not convinced.
Bill
Good info, until recently Facebook was being constantly bombarded with spam links. Whats more scarier is that some of these links go to phishing sites that the uninformed user would just casually enter their login details giving these cyber crooks access to their personal information.
Hey Tech84,
Great point – but, if anything, the situation is getting worse.
Bill