BENGALURU: Beware, Facebook users! There are account hijackers on the prowl. The gang members can steal your account in just 5 seconds, and in lieu of your credentials, you might be asked to pay a huge ransom amount.
A Bengaluru-based candid photographer recently became a victim of this and he shelled out `6,000 to get his Facebook account back. However, the victim had to approach the cops after the cyber criminals started blackmailing him for more money to restore his account.
A complaint was filed in this connection at the new cyber crime police station, which was inaugurated on Saturday.
How did he fall prey to the gang?
The complainant, who preferred to stay anonymous, said that he works as a candid photographer and uses Facebook page as a tool to promote his business. The social networking website helps him get more customers as his photos reach a wide range of audience at just one click.
Police sources said,“A week back, around 6.30am, the photographer got a call from a person who introduced himself as Facebook representative. They told him that they were checking the authenticity of Facebook account and asked him for the One Time Password (OTP) sent on his phone a few seconds back. The complainant, without sensing any foul play, gave the OTP to the callers.”
“The same day when he tried to login to his Facebook account, he failed. He tried to retrieve the password but in vain. Then he thought of the call in the morning. On calling the person back, he realized he had fallen prey to the cyber criminals,” police added.
“The hijacker blackmailed me of defaming my account by posting vulgar videos. He said that he would return back my account only if I paid the ransom,” the complainant said.
“The victim was panicked after the incident as he had put in lot of efforts to build his brand on Facebook. Only when he did not get his account back despite paying `6,000, he thought of consulting cyber cops,” police said.
Modus operandi
The hijacker uses a simple way to hack your Facebook account. They enter your email ID in the Facebook login page and click on ‘Forgot password’. There are three ways to retrieve the account, including the one in which you have to mention the OTP sent on your registered mobile phone number.
The hacker opts for this option and a message is sent by Facebook on the user’s number. Within no time, the hijacker, posing as a Facebook representative, calls the user and asks for the OTP sent on your mobile. After getting the OTP, they change the password, the login email ID and other credentials.
On target
People, who are on FB for image building process, businessmen and those with many followers are vulnerable. Hijackers know they will be ready to pay the amount as they would not want to lose their profiles on which they must have spent lot of time.