“The Minister of Finance published secret information about an artificial intelligence platform, with the help of which Lithuanian citizens can get seriously rich”, – such and similar advertisements attract gullible Internet users.
However, this author did not write such or similar texts. That one 15min “Delfi” editor-in-chief Rasa Lukaitytė-Vnarauskienė also confirmed.
“This is another case of a portal clone, which we are fighting not only publicly, but also with the help of institutions.
In September, the Internet Media Association and the National Cyber Security Center (NKSC) signed a cooperation agreement to prevent the fast-growing practice of cybercriminals to create clones of the country’s news portals and their social media accounts.
For that purpose, the first social initiative in the Lithuanian digital media market “Stop portal clones!” is launched.
Clones of portals usually spread on social networks, so we strongly invite readers to read portals directly by entering the name of the portal in their browser or installing the app, this way you will be safer and get verified information”, the comment states.
R.Lukaitytė-Vnarauskienė also urges, if you see fraudulent links, to share them with NKSC.
You can lose money
When you click on the fraudulent link, the page presents stories of individuals who have miraculously become rich. Allegedly, they wrote to the “Delfi” editorial office, telling about the fabulously large sums received.
However, a search for their photos reveals that they were “borrowed” from Russian dating sites, the Instagram app, and even stock photo pages.
The fraudulent page offers a test with three questions – “Have you used Oil trade or similar platforms?”, “Are you satisfied with fuel prices in Lithuania?”, “Would you like to take advantage of this situation of fuel price jumps and earn passive income every day.”
Even if the answer is no, ultimately the verdict is the same for the user – it is suitable for the Oil trade program.
Although such a company is still found when UAB Oil Trade is entered in the search of the Google program, according to the Register Center (RC), it was liquidated due to bankruptcy proceedings back in February of this year.
Screenshot /Hoax spread on social networks
Not the first time
Portal 15min have already described this scheme. A sensational headline appears on Facebook: “The shocking truth: new circumstances and reasons for the death of 15-year-old Mykolos have been revealed during a thorough investigation, the suspect who allegedly embezzled the property of a minor has been arrested.” At the end of it, a phrase completely unrelated to the teenager’s disappearance is added: “People have already started making money “.
Clicking on the link opens a long text about this story that caught the attention of all of Lithuania. This appears to be an authentic message – the teenager was indeed missing, an intensive search was unsuccessful, and his body was finally found in the river.
Screenshot /Hoax spread on social networks
But various details reveal that the “article” is just a hoax. First of all, its date. According to the liar, the boy’s body was found in Neri in November, but it happened on May 1st.
Although the name “Delfi” can be seen above the text, the page visually resembles its design, the author is listed as a criminal news editor, the text is not from this portal.
Warns of fraud
Disinformation analysis center operating in Lithuania Debunk.orgwho analyzed dozens of accounts and hundreds of false ads, warns against trusting catchy headlines.
According to the representatives of the center, Internet fraudsters create copies of major news portals, fake their accounts on the social network Facebook and invite them to invest in fraudulent investment platforms in order to defraud people of money.
“Unidentified persons are exploiting the brands of LRT, LNK, Delfi, InfoTV, Estonian public broadcaster ERR, Estonian newspaper Eesti Päevaleht, as well as Ignitis and Orlen Lietuva, by creating fake copies of their accounts that host fake advertising on behalf of these brands,” according to the published analysis.
According to the analysis, the main purpose of these ads is to trick Facebook users into bogus investment schemes. Internet scammers use fake or cloned accounts that lead to websites with articles.
Read more: Debunk.org: the biggest disinformation and fraud attack is underway in Lithuania
Not only Lithuanian users are fooled
During the analysis, it was found that fake advertisements published under the guise of well-known brands were shown to users of Facebook and other Meta platforms (Instagram, messaging apps Messenger) more than 5.1 million times. times.
The researchers found out that the target audience of fictitious advertisements is not only citizens of Lithuania, but also citizens of other Central and Western Europe.
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A wave of scams
With one click on a fraudulent link, the entire Facebook network is flooded with fraudulent offers.
According to cyber security expert Marius Pareščius, this happens because the Facebook network doesn’t filter advertisements accurately enough, and instead of doing that, they seek profit.
“Facebook has introduced such a technology that you can tag users who will be shown advertisements. If a person clicks on the link once, he will continue to receive advertising from the same sender,” explained the expert.
According to the specialist, once the ad distributor has been “caught up”, the user will receive more and more such fraudulent advertisements.
“Facebook receives its percentage from the broadcast of each advertisement, which is why it is not filtered,” the expert emphasized.
15min verdict: lie. A scam scheme is circulating on social media to defraud users of their money.
The publication was prepared in 15 minutes in partnership with Metawhich aims to stop the spread of misleading news on the social network. More about the program and its rules – here.
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2024-08-26 04:23:00
