Geoff Edwards considered himself a sophisticated internet user, but now he considers himself a cautionary tale.
Hackers, heB次元官网网址檚 recently discovered, are capable of fooling anyone. He learned that lesson the hard way when he lost his Facebook account, and now heB次元官网网址檚 warning others.
It can happen to you too.
B次元官网网址淣one of us realize what shaky ground we stand on with this platform,B次元官网网址� Edwards said. B次元官网网址淪omebody can send you an email and you can make one wrong move and your whole Facebook world comes crashing down.B次元官网网址�
For Edwards, whoB次元官网网址檚 been on Facebook since 2009, the nightmare started May 28, 2022.
He woke up to a notification email, telling him someone had accessed his Facebook account at 3:46 a.m. that morning, using a different device than his tablet. The email asked him to verify that it was him.
It looked totally legit, so Edwards clicked through all the procedures to prove his identity and secure his account.
B次元官网网址淭hey send a code to your phone, you enter that code at the website and youB次元官网网址檙e back on Facebook again,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚 carried on with my day and when I came back in later that day I had Facebook advising me that my videos were ready to view.
B次元官网网址淎nd I thought to myself, B次元官网网址榃hat videos?B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址�
This email had links to 17 of them, all uploaded within two minutes of each other.
Edwards didnB次元官网网址檛 dare click on any of the links, but next thing he knew he was looking at another email, with Facebook saying his account was suspended, heB次元官网网址檇 breached community standards and he had 30 days to dispute it.
The problem at that point was, there was no way to dispute it. He couldnB次元官网网址檛 find any humans to talk to, only unhelpful links.
B次元官网网址淓ach link I tried sent me to that Facebook screen saying my account was suspended and I had 30 days to respond,B次元官网网址� Edwards said. B次元官网网址淚 did find one link to people who are concerned about data breaches through Facebook. I wrote an email and actually got a human being who told me it wasnB次元官网网址檛 their department and they couldnB次元官网网址檛 help me.
B次元官网网址淪omewhere in there was a phone number in California to try, but no one answers. ItB次元官网网址檚 just a voice recording.B次元官网网址�
As if thatB次元官网网址檚 not bad enough, Edwards also got hit in the pocketbook.
He had a long-dormant PayPal account, still attached to Facebook and linked to his bank account. Whoever hacked his account bought Facebook advertising and he was tagged for $328.
B次元官网网址淭hey didnB次元官网网址檛 get my credit card information, because that expired, otherwise they could have drained that account too,B次元官网网址� Edwards said. B次元官网网址淎s it is, IB次元官网网址檝e had to go through a bunch of business with my bank and register with Western Union and Equifax and that sort of thing, in case they try to do anything else.B次元官网网址�
Edwards is far from the only person to be fooled by phishing emails, although he still struggles to understand what exactly triggered the hack.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e looked at the emails over and over and I still canB次元官网网址檛 tell which one might be a phishing email,B次元官网网址� he said.
But a Google search using terms like Facebook hack or suspended will produce similar tales.
When he went to the RCMP to open a file after discovering the bank fraud, he said to an officer, B次元官网网址淚 canB次元官网网址檛 believe they got me.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淎nd his response was, B次元官网网址楧onB次元官网网址檛 kick yourself too hard about it. TheyB次元官网网址檙e professionals and they have a knack for making things look almost identical to a message from Facebook.B次元官网网址�
In most cases, thereB次元官网网址檚 no happy ending to this scenario. Once a Facebook account is compromised, thereB次元官网网址檚 no getting it back.
For Edwards, an actor and audio/video content producer (streamworks.ca and geoffedwards.media), the lost account means lost contacts. There are 600 or so people heB次元官网网址檚 connected with over the years. Those contacts are gone. HeB次元官网网址檚 thankful to still have his Twitter handle (@geoffedwards) with 1,100-plus followers, but Facebook appears to be a total writeoff.
B次元官网网址淎t this point IB次元官网网址檇 have to create a whole new identify on Facebook, and I donB次元官网网址檛 know if I want to,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淏ut if I were back on Facebook today IB次元官网网址檇 tell people on there to nail down their account, be very cautious about what they click on and donB次元官网网址檛 depend on Facebook alone for your social media presence.
B次元官网网址淏eing on Facebook is a necessary evil these days because thatB次元官网网址檚 where you connect with your customers and your community, and thatB次元官网网址檚 where employers go to find out about you, but you need to be hyper-alert with any e-mails claiming to be from Facebook, or any social media platform for that matter.B次元官网网址�
eric.welsh@hopestandard.com
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