Read the Beforeitsnews.com story here. Advertise at Before It's News here.
Profile image
By muckracker1 (Reporter)
Contributor profile | More stories
Story Views
Now:
Last hour:
Last 24 hours:
Total:

Who's Stealing Your FB Info? Social Bots Create Phony Profiles On Facebook To Harvest Your Info

% of readers think this story is Fact. Add your two cents.


 

Beware: The socialbots are coming. These fake profiles mimic real people on Facebook but are actually computer programs that try to harvest private data from users, and expose them to othersecurity risks.

University of British Columbia researchers created a social network of a single botmaster and 102 socialbots, and then let it loose on Facebook for eight weeks. The results were a little scary.

  • During the eight-week period, the socialbots were able to send out 8,570 friend requests on Facebook, of which 3,055 were accepted. However, the “extended neighborhood” — friends of friends — numbered approximately 1,085,785. The socialbots averaged around 20 friends, with some ensnaring as many as 80 or 90.
  • The socialbots had far more success getting friend requests accepted from friends of Facebook users who had already accepted its initial friend requests, due largely to common friends being included in friend requests on the social network. On first pass, only 20 percent of friend requests were accepted, but once the bogus accounts were passed off as friends of friends, that number jumped to 60 percent.
  • By accessing the profiles of friends with less stringent security settings, the socialbots were able to average 175 pieces of data from publicly inaccessible profiles per day, and ended up with a total of roughly 250 gigabytes of data (all of which was encrypted during the study and deleted after its conclusion).
  • The Facebook Immune System was only able to block 20 percent of the bogus accounts used by the socialbots. And the reason why those 20 were blocked: Some alert Facebook users flagged them as spam.
  • Those bogus profiles were created to be “socially attractive.” The researchers actually used photos lifted from sites like Hot or Not , where users rate the attractiveness of the subject, believing that better-looking subjects bring better results. MORE

A Facebook spokesperson on how the social network combats bots:



Before It’s News® is a community of individuals who report on what’s going on around them, from all around the world.

Anyone can join.
Anyone can contribute.
Anyone can become informed about their world.

"United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.

Before It’s News® is a community of individuals who report on what’s going on around them, from all around the world. Anyone can join. Anyone can contribute. Anyone can become informed about their world. "United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.


LION'S MANE PRODUCT


Try Our Lion’s Mane WHOLE MIND Nootropic Blend 60 Capsules


Mushrooms are having a moment. One fabulous fungus in particular, lion’s mane, may help improve memory, depression and anxiety symptoms. They are also an excellent source of nutrients that show promise as a therapy for dementia, and other neurodegenerative diseases. If you’re living with anxiety or depression, you may be curious about all the therapy options out there — including the natural ones.Our Lion’s Mane WHOLE MIND Nootropic Blend has been formulated to utilize the potency of Lion’s mane but also include the benefits of four other Highly Beneficial Mushrooms. Synergistically, they work together to Build your health through improving cognitive function and immunity regardless of your age. Our Nootropic not only improves your Cognitive Function and Activates your Immune System, but it benefits growth of Essential Gut Flora, further enhancing your Vitality.



Our Formula includes: Lion’s Mane Mushrooms which Increase Brain Power through nerve growth, lessen anxiety, reduce depression, and improve concentration. Its an excellent adaptogen, promotes sleep and improves immunity. Shiitake Mushrooms which Fight cancer cells and infectious disease, boost the immune system, promotes brain function, and serves as a source of B vitamins. Maitake Mushrooms which regulate blood sugar levels of diabetics, reduce hypertension and boosts the immune system. Reishi Mushrooms which Fight inflammation, liver disease, fatigue, tumor growth and cancer. They Improve skin disorders and soothes digestive problems, stomach ulcers and leaky gut syndrome. Chaga Mushrooms which have anti-aging effects, boost immune function, improve stamina and athletic performance, even act as a natural aphrodisiac, fighting diabetes and improving liver function. Try Our Lion’s Mane WHOLE MIND Nootropic Blend 60 Capsules Today. Be 100% Satisfied or Receive a Full Money Back Guarantee. Order Yours Today by Following This Link.


Report abuse

    Comments

    Your Comments
    Question   Razz  Sad   Evil  Exclaim  Smile  Redface  Biggrin  Surprised  Eek   Confused   Cool  LOL   Mad   Twisted  Rolleyes   Wink  Idea  Arrow  Neutral  Cry   Mr. Green

    MOST RECENT
    Load more ...

    SignUp

    Login

    Newsletter

    Email this story
    Email this story

    If you really want to ban this commenter, please write down the reason:

    If you really want to disable all recommended stories, click on OK button. After that, you will be redirect to your options page.