Beware of fake plane tickets hoax on Facebook

A fake giveaway is circulating on Facebook, offering free tickets to British Airways or Emirates flights. The scam spreads through the same link, shared in News Feeds.

Fig 1. Emirates Facebook scam

Fig 2. British Airways scam post

The scam page claims that British Airways or Emirates (whichever page loads in your browser) is giving away free first class tickets around the world. All you have to do – the page claims – is share the page on your Facebook Wall and send it to a group of Facebook friends.

The page seems harmless, but scammers may use it to install spyware programs, rogue Facebook apps or browser extensions on your device.

This is not the first and most likely not the last time major airlines have been targeted in such scams. In fact, last month, a fake Emirates Facebook page was promising free flight tickets in exchange for Likes. No legitimate company would use such a tactic, so be careful on what links you access.