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Twitter users spread 'Unfollowed Me' virus

Thousands of Twitter users are falling for the fast-infecting "Unfollowed Me" virus and spreading it to their followers, reports Sophos blog Naked Security.  Like the nefarious Facebook spam scam that promises to show users who has been stalking their Facebook profile, the rogue "Unfollowed Me" application claims it will reveal who has stopped following you on Twitter. Both appeal to the vanity
Don't do it!
Don't do it!via Sophos / Today

Thousands of Twitter users are falling for the fast-infecting "Unfollowed Me" virus and spreading it to their followers, reports Sophos blog Naked Security.  

Like the nefarious Facebook spam scam that promises to show users who has been stalking their Facebook profile, the rogue "Unfollowed Me" application claims it will reveal who has stopped following you on Twitter. Both appeal to the vanity of social media users in a largely successful attempt to lead us to survey sites.

Tweets issued in the name of those you follow on Twitter arrive with a message, a link and hashtags that may be trending on the microblogging site. They look something like this:

58 people have unfollowed me, find out how many have unfollowed you: [LINK] #rw2011 #duringsexplease #youneedanasswhoopin

Clicking the link leads you to "a webpage which looks as if it's about to reveal that information — but is actually designed to make you take an online survey instead." The scammers make money on every survey taken. And if you have given the rogue app permission to access your account, it'll start sending out similar tweets under your account's name.

If you've already fallen for "Unfollwed Me" or one of the countless similar scams, it's easy to correct.

Here's what you do:

  • On the menu at the top of your Twitter profile click Profile.
  • Underneath your Twitter profile pic, click the link Edit Your Profile.
  • This will lead you to your Settings page.
  • On the menu at the top of your Setting page, click Connections.
  • There you will see the applications you've allowed to access your account. (It's a good idea to check this fairly regularly).
  • You may have a long list of applications if you've connected Facebook, Foursquare, Twitter for iPhone to your account.
  • Carefully scroll through the list and remove the suspicious apps you don't recognize.
  • Email your apologies to your friends who follow you on Twitter and suggest they do the same.
  • Stay up-to-date on the latest social media scams by following SophosLabs on Twitter.

via Sophos

More on the annoying way we live now:

Helen A.S. Popkin trusts no one. Join her on Facebook and/or Twitter, won't you?