A decoy message claiming to contain a private video featuring rapper Nicki Minaj is targeting Facebook to lead them to a page hosting a scam.
The post circulating on the social network follows a typical pattern: the victim is lured with news worthy of making the rounds of all online media, which refers to an address outside the Facebook.
The page the user is taken to appears to be from Facebook, but a quick look at the address bar reveals that a different domain is being used. However, the scammers have added a few elements, such as a comments section containing enticing messages from fake users claiming to have seen the video.
Then, in order to gain access to the content, users must follow some steps, with sharing the "information" being an absolute prerequisite, as the scammers' goal is to distribute the scammy post to as many victims as possible.
In the case of the Nicki Minaj video scam, the visitor is asked to complete an online survey in order to be allowed access to the content.
Obviously, there is no video available as completing the survey is really the ultimate goal of the scammers, who are paid to submit the surveys by various companies that apply. This way the scammers can make a lot of money by scamming a large number of people, and right now news about Nicki Minaj seems to be the perfect bait.
This scam may seem “innocent,” but in many cases the surveys ask for personal information, such as phone numbers or email addresses. Scammers can use this information to commit other scams or to send spam or phishing emails.
Alternatively, the page hosting the bait can also lead to potentially unwanted applications (PUAs) or malware. In either case, the risk is real.
Before rushing to follow such news, users should check whether the news is available in reliable media. If there are no relevant reports, this means that the information is false, since newspapers and news organizations will be the first to publish such details.
