It has come to our attention that a scam using the name of Chikka Text Messenger, an internet-based SMS service that supports communication between computer/tablet users and phone/smartphone users, is making rounds on Facebook. By banking on the popularity of this unique service with a solid market, cybercriminals have taken scamming to new grounds.
The scam comes in the form of a Facebook app, enticing users to download, install, and promote the service called ChikkaLoad to all their contacts in order to get a free PhP300-worth of phone credits or load.
Upon investigating, we have come across a Facebook apps page called ChikkaLoadPH:
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It’s branded to look like a real Chikka page, and it’s slicker than a lot of the survey scams we’ve see. Let’s take a closer look.
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Clicking the Next button in Step 1 leads users to Step 2, a page that encourages them to promote the app on Facebook. Users are required to be logged in to their account if they wish to do this; however, one can easily skip this and the succeeding steps without worry or problem.
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In Step 3, users are then asked to choose their mobile home network. Regardless of what they pick, users are required to fill in a survey to obtain their promised freebie.
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One thing to note: the surveys vary, depending on the user’s IP address location.
Once the survey has been filled in, the scammers gain their affiliate commission and the users are left wondering where their credits went.
We also found out that once the user opted to promote ChikkaLoadPH on Facebook via the app’s Share feature and his/her Facebook account is tied in to their Twitter account, the user unknowingly promotes the fake app to their Twitter contacts as well.
We have notified contacts at Facebook shortly after finding this and the page is now offline. Chikka users, however, are advised to keep an eye out for duplicates of this fake app on Facebook. If you see them, steer clear.
Jovi Umawing
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