Facebook recommends investigating three things before accepting a friend request.
Robert Traynham, head of public affairs at Facebook, told Today that so far in 2021 Facebook has removed almost 1.3 billion fake accounts. The company says they’re constantly working to find ways to protect their users from scammers, but as is the case with most things in life, nothing is foolproof. However, the social media company says there are steps that you can take to protect yourself as well.
Facebook told Today that you should investigate new friend requests or direct messages before engaging by checking three things in particular: your shared connections, that they’re not a duplicate profile, and that they’re active users. The social media company suggests “comparing your shared connections and who their friends are on the platform.” Additionally, you should make sure you’re not already friends with a similar account that already exists because this likely means the new page is an imposter.
And lastly, Facebook recommends looking to see if the account has any recent posts. Check their timeline, their interaction with other accounts, and who or what they’ve tagged. People tend to interact with friends on Facebook—after all, that’s what social media is for. If the account doesn’t have any activity with others, that’s suspicious.
Article by Allie Hogan for BestLife
Source: Never Accept a Friend Request Before Checking These 3 Things, Expert Warns (msn.com)
