Don’t fall for this sick and sophisticated scam.
Social media users are being warned to watch out for new Facebook posts about missing children — with an internet watchdog saying they’re the work of fraudsters trying to steal money.
Full Fact says posts about a missing boy named Tyler have been circulating on the social media platform in recent weeks, initially appearing to be from the boy’s worried parents.
One widely shared post from Dec. 13 reads: “This is the most recent picture of my son Tyler Anderson at his first day of school … He was last seen wearing black Converses with purple and red shoelaces as well as a blue zip-up hoodie.”
“He has dirty blonde hair, blue eyes, and he’s about 5’4-5’5 and 124lb,” the post continues.
The text is accompanied by a photo of a young child identified as Tyler. But according to Full Fact, it’s actually an image of an Australian kid that has been repurposed for the con.
According to the Sun, the scammers urge Facebook users to share the posts on their own profiles in order to raise awareness about the so-called missing children. The more shares a post gets, the more legitimate it appears to be.
Once the information has been widely disseminated, the scammer goes into the original post and edits it —…
