A new profile viewer scam is making the rounds at Facebook. The Facebook application, named Hiolper, purports to show users who is viewing either their pictures or their profile. Facecrooks, a Facebook community dedicated to exposing Facebook scams, notes that there have been two such "profile viewer" scams active on Facebook recently and that both require you to install rogue applications and end in survey scams. However, the community page notes that Facebook does not allow developers the access to the data required to create such applications.
A typical message looks like this: "OMG! i just noticed who keep watching my profile and photos. It was really shocking to know. Check who looks at your profile at..." However, users are taken to a request to access basic information, post to Facebook as the user, and access personal data even when users are not using the application.
Users who grant such permission are usually taken to a place that says something like, "Take our JC Penny Survey to win $$$!!!" Users are told that they are required to complete such surveys to make sure it is not a spam request. Once users complete the second survey, they are now spamming messages on friends' walls, messages, and newsfeeds. To remove such applications, go to your Facebook account settings.
Others will claim that Facebook has issued an update allowing people to see who has viewed their profile. However, such claims must come from a first-hand source to be believable; if Facebook does not make such an announcement, be skeptical. Sophos, an Internet security community, notes that Facebook does not treat rogue applications as seriously as it does other issues with the website, allowing such applications to go unchecked. Therefore, it is up to the Facebook community to deal with such apps by refusing to fall for these tricks.
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