Media release regarding fake social media sweepstakes

The Directorate for the Protection of Personal Data informs that within the framework of the exercise of its legal powers, it notices an increased activity of organizing fake prize games through social networks (Facebook, Instagram…). In doing so, citizens are promised different types of rewards, and in return they are asked to reveal their personal data such as name and surname, address, photo, ID card number, social security number, data from payment cards, such as and copies of personal documents.

The Directorate advises citizens to be extremely careful when disclosing their personal data on the Internet, because there is an increased risk that they will be misused for other illegal purposes.

The Directorate appeals to citizens to be careful and not to submit their personal data via the Internet to unknown or insufficiently known persons without checking whether the published information about the prize game is correct. In this context, we point out that computer-based social engineering techniques such as “phishing” and “pharming” are commonly used in such cases. These forms of fraud include a set of activities by unauthorized senders, through the use of fake e-mail messages (phishing), or the use of fake web pages (pharming), or the use of fake profiles on social networks, trying to ask users to receive confidential personal data.

Unfortunately, there is a large number of users who are not familiar with this type of fraud, and if the intruders once get hold of the confidential data, they either use it themselves for certain, usually illegal purposes, or sell it.

In the messages, they usually refer to fake websites, or fake profiles on social media, which according to their appearance completely correspond to the websites, that is, the profiles of legitimate companies (firms). Therefore, we appeal to all citizens to act with appropriate increased attention and to do a full check before deciding to reveal personal and other data.