SEATTLE -- Facebook and The Washington Attorneys’ General Office teamed up to stop what they say are deceptive practices by an Internet company out of Delaware.
“Today we filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against Adscend Media, LLC., and its owners,” Attorney General Rob McKenna said,
Adscend is a Delaware company that makes $20 million a year by tricking Facebook users into clicking on deceptive links that spread spam, McKenna said. One such practice involves a technique called "click-jacking.”
Click-jacking involves computer codes that trigger Facebook’s "like" feature, placing messages on a person's Facebook wall.
Once you click on the “Like” button, McKenna says it goes out to all your friends as if you liked an ad or web-site that in reality you never visited. Your Facebook friends might then click on the message and the ads will go out to all their friends.
“It's a set of hyperlinks to advertisers’ pages that provide revenue to Adscend," Assistant Washington Attorney General Paula Selis said. "Every time you click on the ad, Adscend makes money, which is at the heart of its business model.”
No specific money damages are specified in the lawsuits attorneys said “is aimed at getting Adscend to stop its deceptive practices.”
“Adscend does not comment on pending litigation.”
Facebook urges its users to always remain vigilant, trust their instincts and immediately report scams and spam. People can educate themselves and receive updates on how to protect their information on Facebook by visiting and liking Facebook’s Security Page. For detailed information on click-jacking and how to avoid it, both the Attorney General’s Office and Facebook recommend “Keeping You Safe from Scams and Spam."
