It’s been a while now since Tor became the go-to option for those who wanted to ensure their privacy while browsing online. If you still haven’t heard of it, it’s a network that allows you to browse the Internet anonymously, integrated by nodes all over the planet. Each one of this points is actually a computer belonging to a member of the project, which was launched in 2002.

Every one of the machines that is connected to this network sends information securely – all communications are encrypted and the messages pass through random nodes, which makes it very difficult to intercept them or find their origin.

Luckily for lovers of this system, Facebook has announced that it will add Tor to its Android app, which means that those who use it can surf the social network in a more secure manner.

The first steps towards the integration of Tor were seen in 2014, when Facebook launched its onion address. It was an historic move which allowed Tor users to connect to the platform anonymously. “It provides end-to-end communication, from your browser directly into a Facebook datacenter,” explained Facebook.

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During the last few months of 2015, a generous promotion by Primark (the well-known Irish clothing giant) started to do the rounds on Facebook in Spain, whereby users were promised the chance of winning a gift-card worth €500 by clicking like on a publication. The year previous also saw a similar offer by Zara, another clothing giant, which saw the company raffling off store credit if you invited friends to attend an event. However, neither of these pages, offers, or events were related to the store in question, nor to any of their employees.

It turns out that these were fraudulent offers created by fake profiles, which used social engineering techniques to take advantage of users. Although these cases involved well-known stores, any of Facebook’s users could see their profile copied and stolen.

If you do ever come across a profile that is passing itself off as your own, or your company’s, then there is luckily a way to have it removed, as Facebook has a mechanism in place to report and stop the imposter in its tracks.

The first thing that you need to do is enter the fraudulent page (you can’t raise the alarm from your own profile), click on the button located to the right of the cover photo, and choose “report”. In the following window, which will open automatically, you have to select “report this account” and, later, follow the instructions on the screen.

However, there is also a chance that the imposter has blocked you, so that you can’t access the account. If this happens, you will have to ask a friend to report the false account. The friend will receive a message with a link to continue to process.

It is also possible that the person whose identity has been stolen doesn’t have a Facebook account. If this is the case, the social network has a section for events such as this in its help center.

Anyway, no matter what the situation, Facebook advises that you get in touch with a lawyer or a regulator before viewing the content that the imposter has posted on the page. The aim is to be informed fully of the situation and the legal options available to the affected party.

The social media website doesn’t just offer help to its users, but also provides information to the authorities to help them better understand how to act. What’s more, there is also a special section where they can present their own requests relating to an investigation.

The repercussions that an imposter may face depend on what the false account was being used for. In Spain, for example, identity theft over a prolonged period of time (to the point where others are tricked into believing the false identity) is considered a crime that is punishable by up to three years in prison.

If the profile is used to gain personal information on other users with the aim of committing a crime, the situation is even more serious.

We all hope that this never happens to us, or to anyone that we know, but as always it pays to be prepared to act quickly if it should arise.

The post What to do when someone steals your identity on Facebook appeared first on MediaCenter Panda Security.

There has been news lately highlighting a trend in hackers using LinkedIn, the popular social media platform for professionals looking to connect with like-minded individuals, to dupe unwitting victims. This includes the creation of fake profiles with the aim of stealing personal information. The fake profiles pose as recruiters and quickly begin to add contacts in the field of their chosen victim. Once they have what appears to be a reputable profile, they then add their victim as a contact having gained their trust as they usually have lots of common contacts in the related sector.

The text that is used for the fake profiles is usually copy and pasted directly from other sources, usually genuine profiles. The accompanying profile photo, which is generally of a woman, is also taken from other professional profiles or, in some cases, a stock photo. It is also revealed that they use keywords such as “reservoir engineer”, “exploration manager” and “cargo securement training” which are likely to help them to attract visibility through the site’s built-in search engine. The majority of the terms relate to the logistics, information security and oil and gas industries.

Boasting over 400 million users worldwide, LinkedIn is seen as a way for professionals to create circles of similar workers in their sector with the aim of using the platform as a form of self-promotion, doing away with the traditional methods of job hunting. It has also become a valuable tool for businesses, who are able to head hunt top talent as well as posting content relating to their company.

In response to the fears of its many users, LinkedIn said: “We investigate suspected violations of our Terms of Service, including the creation of false profiles, and take immediate action when violations are uncovered. We have a number of measures in place to confirm authenticity of profiles and remove those that are fake. We encourage members to utilize our Help Center to report inaccurate profiles and specific profile content to LinkedIn.”

Some advice for users who may be concerned that they are at risk include doing a reverse image search by dragging and dropping the profile picture into Google Images and seeing what it brings up. You can also copy and paste the job information in Google to reveal whether it has been taken from somewhere else.

Seeing as this isn’t the first time that there have been concerns over fake profiles and spamming on LinkedIn, it might be worth your while to do a quick bit of research before you accept a new contact. As always, it pays to be careful with information that you share online as it can save you many potential problems in the future.

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