Facebook Hit With “Clickjacking” Scam
Inappropriate Images Bombard Users
Some of Facebook's 800 million users are currently being bombarded with adult images, including photos featuring extreme violence and nudity. The company says it's currently investigating the issue, though some users say it's the final straw and have vowed to quit the site altogether.
The problem arose earlier this week when a number of users (the precise total remains unknown) began complaining that their News Feed -- essentially the site's main page and the place where friend activity is pooled together -- had been invaded by adult advertising. How bad was the content in question? Apparently some of the images featured Justin Bieber in explicit positions.
Security experts believe that the problem stems from a "clickjacking" form of attack. This occurs when hackers use malicious links built into websites to execute code on a user's computer and essentially hijack their web browser. Graham Cluley, a senior tech consultant for the UK-based security firm Sophos, is a proponent of this position.
Worse still, Cluley doesn't yet see an end in sight for the problem. "We are hearing this problem is spreading," Cluley said. "Facebook needs to get this under control, because the content is so offensive."
Facebook says it has been able to limit the damage and vows to do its best to keep users safe from this kind of thing when visiting the site. "Protecting the people who use Facebook from spam and malicious content is a top priority for us and we are always working to improve our systems to isolate and remove material that violates our terms," a Facebook spokesperson said. "We have recently experienced an increase in reports and we are investigating and addressing the issue."
Unfortunately, that note doesn't appear to be satisfying everyone. A number of users took to Twitter (ironically enough) to say they've had it with Facebook and vowed to quit the site soon.
Cluley isn't surprised that the attack occurred, given Facebook's immense profile and even bigger user base. He says the site needs to protect users better, or it could see a drastic reduction in the number of people visiting the site. "It’s precisely this kind of problem which is likely to drive people away from the site," Cluley said.
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