"Free AirPods Giveaway"... SNS 'Easter Egg' Scam Targeting Teens

SNS Features Used in Event-Posing Scams
Passwords Demanded with False Promise of Prizes, Leading to Account Hijacking
Stolen Personal Information May Be Used for Other Crimes

Fraudulent post disguised as an event. Photo by Facebook capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] High school student Kim Seong-jun (18, pseudonym) recently experienced an embarrassing situation after commenting on a post on Facebook.

The post stated that users who typed "GG" in English would receive a gifticon, AirPods, or other prizes on a first-come, first-served basis, with their comments appearing in pink. When Kim saw this and left a comment, his text actually appeared in pink, and an animation featuring a robot arm and a skull appeared on the comment screen.

When Kim sent a message claiming he had won the event, the post author said, "We need to verify your identity," and requested his name, phone number, and the address to receive the prize. Up to this point, it seemed harmless, but then the author demanded Kim’s KakaoTalk ID and password as part of an additional identity verification process. When Kim hesitated, the author showed him other users’ winning confirmation reviews and the payment screen for the prize Kim had chosen to reassure him, and eventually Kim handed over the information without suspicion.

However, instead of receiving a gift, Kim’s account password was changed shortly after. His profile picture and name were replaced with those of a complete stranger. The event post was also deleted. It was all a scam aimed at hijacking his account.

Conversation with the author of the event disguised scam post. / Photo by Facebook capture

The method Kim fell victim to is a new type of scam using Facebook’s “Easter Egg” feature (hidden messages or functions in games or programs). When a specific word is entered in the comment box, the comment appears in a different color than usual, and an animation plays briefly on the screen. Scammers exploit this by making it look like the user has won an event. Recently, such account hijacking scam posts have frequently appeared on pages and communities popular among teenagers. Many online users have also posted questions asking how to respond after falling victim to similar scams.

The personal information and accounts stolen in this way are highly likely to be used unknowingly for other crimes such as secondhand goods scams or voice phishing. It is essentially committing another scam to carry out the original fraud.

A police official advised, "It is best to be suspicious of any event that offers benefits without any cost," adding, "If you suffer hacking damage such as account hijacking, the best course of action is to report it through the National Police Agency’s cybercrime reporting system or notify the messenger service provider to suspend the account."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.