The message also contained a tiny link to a pornographic video.
Turns out he didn’t send the message. His Facebook account had been hacked.
If you have received a similar message through Facebook or MySpace and you clicked on the link you may have been exposed to a virus and your social site is subject to being hacked.
Other messages may read,
“your name” sent you a message.
Subject: heyWoww! Is thhat reallly you in thaat videoo?
or
“Hey, I have this hilarious video of you dancing. Your face is so red. You should check it out”
Have you experienced unauthorized activity in your facebook account? Has it been hacked by someone you do not know?
How To Avoid Being Hacked on Facebook
In this article, I’m going to tell you how your facebook account is hacked and how to KEEP IT FROM being hacked. This information could save you a lot of problems in the future, not to mention the embarrassment of sending out elicit links to your friends and family.
How FaceBook Is Hacked
The main way your Facebook account is hacked is by someone obtaining your password.
Hackers gain unauthorized access through fake apps or website links. This is commonly know as phishing.
When you click on a link to a Web site which looks identical to the Facebook log-in page you automatically enter your username and password. The hacker now has immediate access to your account. Now all he has to do is use his newly found credentials (yours) to log in and send a personal message to all of your friends. When your friends click on the link he gains access to their accounts also.
Hackers can also gain access to your Facebook account by retrieving your saved passwords from your browser. They send out emails that contain malicious software embedded in them. If you open the email, you send your information back to the hacker.
If you”re a moblie phone user you may also be susceptible to hacks since in some countries the network signal is not encrypted. The hacker can possibly enter into the data stream that flows between the mobile and mobile operator and gain access to all of the information that you are sending out.
Facebook Viruses
Since most hackers use sophisticated software to place a virus on your computer once it’s hacked I am including a small amount of information about Facebook Viruses-
The “Koobface” virus- This virus comes through an e-mail sent by one of your social networking site friends inviting you to view a video.
Just don’t open any tiny links to videos that you don’t know anything about and you’ll avoid being exposed to this virus.
PC World has an article outlining more details to the “Koobface” virus. “
The Bredolab Virus- According to mxlab, the email includes downloadable files which include the trojan virus: Bredolab. If you receive an email requesting a “Facebook Password Reset Confirmation” email you should delete it right away.
A sample email may look like this:
Hey (your name), Because of the measures taken to provide safety to our clients, your password has been changed. You can find your new password in attached document. Thanks, The Facebook Team
Imitating official emails is a standard method for spammers. Always avoid downloading email file and attachments. For more information on the Bredolab virus you may want to view this article: New Bredolab Virus Targets Unsuspecting Facebook Users
I also found an article called Beware of Facebook Virus by KDVR FOX 31 Denver News that tells how a malicious virus can affect your computer if your interested in more information about what a Facebook virus can do to you computer.
Has Your FaceBook Account been Hacked?
How To Keep Your Facebook Account from Being Hacked
Now that you know how your Facebook account is hacked and about Facebook viruses , I’ll cover a few steps to take to avoid having your account hacked.
1. Protect Your Password and Secret Answer
Remember, the most common cause of account hacking is by obtaining your password.
Is your password easy to remember?
Here are a few ways to protect your password:
- Change your password to something with numbers, letters, and/or special characters (if you can).
- Don”t make it too easy to guess. Don’t use your pet’s name or your birthday.
- Don’t Trust anyone, No exceptions, don’t tell your password to ANYONE, including your friends.
How To Protect your “secret answer”:
- Birthdays and Pet’s names are not the best secret answers. A great approach is to realize that there’s nothing that says your answer actually has to correspond to the question, so pick an unrelated answer that has nothing to do with you.
- Maybe you can use something off the wall for your birth date such as “mayonnaise”. As long as you can remember it, it doesn’t matter what it is.
- You may even consider using another password to protect your password.
Consider using a special service or software to protect your passwords. I use Lastpass. It’s free and it also includes a password generator. I wrote an article on Lastpass here.
2. Avoid using Facebook Apps you are unfamiliar with.
One of the great things about Facebook is the access to all the applications. It’s nice to have fun, but don’t trust all the invitations for apps that you don’t know anything about. That’s why Facebook always asks if you want to give permission to access a new application.
3. Don’t fall for password recovery schemes or fake emails.
If you receive an email that asks you to change your password, delete it.It’s that simple.
I almost never click on links that are in my junk folder because my gmail account does a pretty good job of filtering fake emails.
You will never be taken to some random site unless you click on a fake link.
When you simply open a fake e-mail you will send your private details to a hacker. Don’t open emails you are unfamiliar with. Once opened, the damage already has been done.
4. Take precautions using mobile apps.
If you use a mobile phone application to access your facebook account check to make sure the signal is encrypted.
In the Unite States most operaters use an encrypted signal but be aware that other countries may not use a protected wireless signal. To avoid any problems always check with the mobile carrier you are accessing.
5. Finally, Change Your Facebook Password Today
I just changed my Facebook Password today since I figure this article will make me a target for a Facebook hack. You may want to do the same. Just use the advice that I included in this article. You may consider installing Lastpass or one of the other password organizers listed under “P” on my internet business resources page to aid you in forming a secure password.
Do you have more advice about how to keep your Facebook Account from being hacked?
If you have more advice on how to keep your Facebook account from being hacked please let everyone know using the comment form below. If you found this article helpful I’d also appreciate your comment below.
Be sure and subscribe to this blog to receive more helpful emails about doing business on the internet.
About Greg Nemer
I respect
your 
I’m not gettin’ how to install Lastpass. I searched but didn’t get. Please tell me in brief. Thanks! Yeah, I liked the site very much. It’s informative. I love my facebook page very much. It’s very precious for me.
Hi Deepti,
Lastpass has a simple installation button on their website at http://lastpass.com/. It works with most web browsers. Just follow the download instructions on their website.
I’m glad you find my website informative.
my name is pratham hazra i have been hacked many times the hacker misused my profile very badly sending abusive languages to many of my friends,teachers,and posted many filthy pictures whenever i create a new account he hacks it plz help me
Did you change your password when you installed your new account?
Hackers get passwords from other accounts also so that would be the first thing to change.
You may also check for spyware on your computer.
Try the free spyware doctor at http://www.pctools.com/spyware-doctor/
Hope this helps!
my account had hacked password username and internal email all things hacker changed and msges to my friends wrong so how i reset all
No one knows my passord but i still get hacked. I also have changed my email and facebook passsord but still get hacked. Now im thinking to creat new email and cancel the old one, would that help and make it dofficult for the hacker. Ideas and suggestion would be appreciated. Thanks!
Hi Saira ,
As far as I know cancelling an email will NOT make a difference. Here’s the steps I would take:
1. Change your password again. Have a different password for your hotmail account and also for facebook. Use lastpass to generate and keep track of your passwords.
2. Go to your approved facebook apps and delete any apps that you don’t use or that look suspicious.
3. If you are using mobile apps you may consider deleting them as they are especially venerable.
I hope this helps!
Greg
My friend threatend to hack my Facebook account. What should I do? I always chang my Password every month but he still treatends me. what should I do. HELP!
THat’s easy! Get better friends.
great contents
Hi,My Cousin’s Facebook Got Hacked And I Guess Maybe I Will Get Hacked Too,Coz 2day My Cousin Opened a Website Of Some Porn Video Which Didnt Work,So Then He Begun Sharing It More Then 10 Times IN 5 Min But He Wasent Sharing Dat Video,The Video Was Sharing It Self! Nd It Tagged My Facebook To That Vid,then I Wanted To Know What Is It,I Opened It Nd It Didnt Work,Then My Cousin Told Me Dat His Facebook Got Hacked And He Cant Acces It Anymore,He Cant Even Retrieve His FB Pass Using He’s Email…Im Really Scared On My Facebook.Idk What To Do To Protect My Account,Please HELP Me,Giving Me Some Suggestions Would Be Good
You already know not to open those links but since you have here’s what to do:
Google the link and look up the virus it contains…
Like the ones I mentioned above- koobface, etc.
Once you know the name of the virus you can look-up the cure. Many of the antivirus programs are now coming with options for social media.
Of course, you should delete the thread on Facebook ASAP. This will prevent the virus from being spread to your friends.