We haven't come across this scam on Facebook for a long time, but here it is again: alleged videos that you have to share before you can see them.

And here we are dealing with an “oldie” in a double sense, because the preview image alone is already a years-old hoax in itself.
But one after anonther! The status contribution is currently distributed as follows:

Screenshot Facebook
Screenshot Facebook

Man dies immediately after infection spreads
You will never wash again after watching the video”

Now we're a little panicked about actually never washing again after watching a video. What mysterious infection might be hiding behind this totally real-looking video preview image? We're just too curious, we need to know!

So let's openly (and credulously) click on the video:

Screenshot mimikama.org
Screenshot mimikama.org

“Click share and post this video to Facebook to watch”

A new page opens that only looks like Facebook.
The alleged comments below are also not real. But we'll continue to play the role of curious user and share the video. The following then happens:

Screenshot mimikama.org
Screenshot mimikama.org

Very decent!
Apparently the creators of the alleged video are worried that you are under 13 years old, which is why you should first take part in a competition to confirm your age. If you're missing the logic here (Huh? I'm confirming my age with a competition?), let me tell you: We don't understand it either.

But well, let's remain gullible here too and click on one of the competition options:

Screenshot mimikama.org
Screenshot mimikama.org

And then we end up with “Inside Leads” who want our data, as well as our consent that sponsors can contact us phone , post and email . And these are not just a few, but several dozen “sponsors” whose mailing list we then end up on.

Profit? None. Video? None. Spam? Much!

For years we have been encountering these lead generators, or to put it more simply: data collectors . These sites promise profits that you never receive , but instead you get a lot of spam in the form of SMS messages, phone calls and of course emails.
At no point was this about unlocking a video. Instead, this is all just another lure method to get user data that is valuable to the generators, which they themselves use and/or resell.

And the preview image? What kind of illness is that?

This is a particularly strong form of Photoshopus Fakensis .
Users take an image editing program and combine two or more images to create a new image. In that image, a plant was used to look like an infection wound: the pods of a lotus flower. The “Urban Legends” page on Facebook already showed this photo manipulation with an image in 2014:

Screenshot Facebook
Screenshot Facebook

In general, this type of image attempts to arouse the user's attention and curiosity with the most disgusting or unbelievable motifs possible. The only “incredible” thing about these images is the creator’s talent for using Photoshop (and actually that’s not really difficult if you have some practice). Who ultimately had the idea to create such images remains unclear. A member of our team reported that these types of images were seen on the 4Chan imageboard over 10 years ago.

Conclusion

At no point was it about unlocking a video. This is just a lure method used by data collectors to encourage users to take part in a supposed competition. A video cannot be seen after entering the data.

Users who have fallen for this method should delete the shared “video” from their Facebook timeline so that other users don’t fall for it too!

 


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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 )