Scam Signature Message:
Free $100 Tim Hortons Gift Card (limited time only)
Tim Hortons is currently giving away $100.00 gift cards to all facebook users!!
Scam Type: Bogus Offer
Trending: December 2011
Why it’s a Scam:
Clicking the wall post link takes you to the following page:
This is lame even by scammer’s standards. Someone clicks on a link for Tim Hortons and instead they are taken to a page for The Cheesecake Factory! If you are silly enough to proceed after this point, then clicking share will spam the bogus message to all of your friends. Clicking like will load the following:
This scam page is similar to countless others we have seen in th past. You are required to complete surveys and purchase special reward offers to ‘qualify’ for the gift card. Totally a marketing gimmick and scam.
**Note – Scams like this often use multiple domains, so you may see a variation in the landing pages and scam messages.
How to Deal with the Scam:
If you did make the mistake of sharing the scam link, then you are now spamming your friends with the very same message. Clean-up your newsfeed and profile to remove references to the scam. (click the “x” in the top right hand corner of the post).
If the excitement of receiving a Cheesecake Factory gift card caused you to lose your head for a moment, and you continued on with the surveys, then be prepared for a deluge of spam via email and snail mail. Also keep an eye out for identity theft attempts and bogus charges on your cell phone.
If you or your Facebook friends are falling for tricks like this, it’s time to get yourself informed of the latest threats. Be sure to join the Facecrooks page on Facebook to be kept informed of the latest security issues.
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