Ever since Facebook came into existence, people have repeatedly read dubious posts claiming that certain tricks can be used to find out who has visited your profile. But don't be fooled: such profile viewers are always scams!

They appear out of nowhere among various posts and are usually accompanied by a strange URL and alarming text. They appear out of nowhere under various posts and usually contain a strange URL and alarming text. And they are designed to entice you to click.

But be careful! The alleged profile viewers are actually traps designed to obtain Facebook users' data.

Characteristics of fraudulent comments

The questionable comments that are currently circulating on Facebook again are provided with striking headlines such as “98% of Facebook users don’t know” or “10 facts about Facebook that you didn’t know.” Mistake. They often contain an image of what appears to be a crying woman and a URL that is drowned in cryptic strings.

Screenshot Facebook comment
Screenshot Facebook comment

The page behind the link: It's all just a facade

If you can't resist curiosity and click on the link, you will end up on a page similar to Facebook, but with a completely different URL in the browser.

Screenshot of fake Facebook page
Screenshot of fake Facebook page

This page talks about a technical error at Facebook that became known a few days ago. This bug supposedly allows access to all profile information and public photos of visitors to your own profile.

The trap: The green rectangle

Now comes the highlight: Curious users are asked to drag a green rectangle into their browser's bookmarks bar. Supposedly this is necessary to confirm that they are not a bot.

Screenshot of fake Facebook page
Screenshot of fake Facebook page

But beware! You will unnoticed install JavaScript in your browser when you drag this green rectangle into the bookmarks bar! This script contains all functions that are also available in the Facebook API documentation.

The consequences: Total data access for fraudsters

Once the script is activated, the fraudsters have full access to:

  • All of the user's private data that is in their profile.
  • All status posts the user has ever published.
  • All pictures and videos.
  • All liked pages and groups.
  • All Facebook pages and groups where the user has admin rights.

The fraudsters can therefore take over the entire profile. This also includes all pages and groups. But that's not all: you also have access to the victim's Facebook Messenger. This means that they can read all of the victim's messages and also send messages on their behalf.

If the Facebook profile is linked to an Instagram account, the fraudsters can also access it.

Conclusion: Profile viewers are always scams

There are no real profile viewers. It never existed and most likely never will.

So if you hear from someone that their Facebook account has been hacked, just ask if they have used a “profile viewer” before. Because very often such supposed tools are used by criminals to get login data.

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Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )