TBC

There are certain brands whose packaging has become iconic. However, as today's picture shows, what we think of as the 'original' pack wasn't always so...

With Keir Starmer's announcement yesterday of a blanket ban on social media for under 16s we thought we'd take a look at the rising tide of Facebook .

These take a variety of forms from phishing and like farming to cloning but what they all have in common is that they all harm the user.

One example is a scam that sends a message to a page purporting to come from Facebook. It informs the page admin that the page will “soon be disabled” because it has been reported as having violated Facebook’s terms of service. The message goes on to claim that the admin can stop the page from being disabled by confirming their Facebook details via the included link inside the message. And this is where the trap lies; that link leads to a spoof Facebook login page designed to steal the Facebook username and password information that is entered into it.

Like Farming can lead to you liking a page you've never seen. It starts with an offer stating you can win something such as a car, tickets, flights, etc., and all you have to do is like and share the page with a comment such as "I'm in" or "Win". The scammer hopes your friends and followers will do the same thereby giving them thousands, and in some cases hundreds of thousands, of likes and followers in a short time. What the owner of the page then does is merge that page with another, that you may never have seen or even want to like, giving that page credibility.

Your Facebook inbox is a prime target for scammers. It often starts with a friend request from someone you don't know - or, worse, a cloned account of an actual friend; accept it and you potentially open your friend list to the scammer giving them access to many more people. Messages in your inbox can contain malware so beware of opening anything from people you don't know or have only recently friended. Chain mails containing videos or links are particularly susceptible to containing malware so be especially vigilant if you receive this in your inbox.

There are lots of pages that publish the latest hoaxes and scams from Snopes and Hoax-Slayer to That's Nonsense as well as many others many others. Be sure to check them regularly and always take time to check before you copy and share or forward to your friends.

Sadly, the weather today precludes us from taking advantage of today's National Day as it is Outdoor Office Day. But, for those that can, we encourage you to take your mobile and laptop into the garden and enjoy working in the fresh air.