Here is an important message that our friends at Arizona State University’s Indian Student Association would like to share with other international students:
“We would like to alert you to a cyberbullying scam that is becoming prominent among international students.
Students are receiving friend requests and subsequent video calls from fake Facebook accounts. The friend request is often from an account that is part of many student groups and seems genuine.
The scammers then capture screenshots and Photoshop lewd and disgusting images alongside the screen capture of the student’s face. Afterwards, they blackmail the individual by threatening to post the photo/video on all their social media accounts and send it to their friends unless the victim agrees to transfer a sum of money through Western Union, usually many thousand dollars.
They are also capable of hacking into one’s friends’ lists and can gain access to other sensitive information.
Please disregard any such photos/videos which target specific individuals, and do not engage with an account that seems fishy. If you have been victimized, please report this crime to the right channels and inform the local police.”
