Posts are a scam that left Facebook groups spammed with ads

Social media posts ask for urgent help to locate an 80-year-old relative considered missing after driving off in a state of confusion. But nearly identical posts were shared in Facebook groups across Canada before being edited to display ads which seek to collect personal data from users, and the same person is shown in an online fundraiser for his funeral expenses in California.

“URGENT- MISSING! My uncle who is 80 drove out yesterday around 5:30 pm from Embrun. That’s the last we tracked his card getting gas but he doesn’t know where he’s going,” says a November 1, 2022 Facebook post shared 2,500 times from a yard sale group for Embrun in Ontario province.

“There is a silver alert activated as well. Please help us get him home safely and quickly as well as their dog Brandi,” the post continues, referencing the public notification system commonly used to help quicklyfind seniors who go missing because of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia.

The same photo was shared in posts in multiple Canadian Facebook groups, including in Newfoundland and Alberta, with the identical text except for the name of the city. The accounts sharing the claim turn off commenting for the posts, preventing people from warning others that the post is false.

A Google reverse image search reveals that the image of the man in the car previously appeared on a GoFundMe…