The other day a TechWelkin reader asked me, “I am receiving repeated SMS text messages on my mobile phone. The message asks me to reset my Facebook password. But I never asked Facebook to change or reset my password. Do you think it is a fraud?” Well, yes, indeed it could be a fraud and an attempt to hack your Facebook account. You may also have got SMS or text messages giving you Facebook password reset code. Facebook sends such a code to your registered mobile phone when you use options like Forgot Password. But you may be getting such text messages without your asking for them! My reader who asked the above question has shared with me such an SMS. The text is like given below: Assuming you’ve not made a request to reset your Facebook password, all other possibilities are rouge. Some of these scenarios are:
Someone is repeatedly trying to log into your Facebook account A bot (a software that works automatically) is trying to guess your password. It is a phishing attempt. This means that no one is trying to open your Facebook account and this SMS / text message was sent to you with a bad link which, if you’ll follow it, will steal your password. The link will open a bad website which may look like Facebook and ask you to enter your current password and then a new password. Obviously, they will trash the “new” password and use the current password to open your Facebook account.
If you have not requested such a code, the only thing you should do is DO NOTHING. Do not click on any link given in the SMS text message. Do not call any phone number given in such a message. If it is a case of phishing, doing nothing will keep your Facebook account safe. However, if a person or a software is trying to guess your password, it is better that you think about the strength of your password. Any of your passwords, be it for Facebook or something else, must not be guessable. Most people use very weak and guessable passwords. (use our strong password generator) Think about your password and if you believe that it is not strong enough, go and log into your Facebook account and change your password to a better one. Some people have also reported that, instead of SMS text message, they get phone call from different numbers. The automatic IVR response on phone asks these Facebook users to reset their Facebook passwords. If you also get such a call, DO NOT do anything that they say. Just disconnect the call and block the number. Mobile apps like TrueCaller can help you finding details of the unknown number. TrueCaller also provides you the facility to block incoming calls and marking a phone number as spam. If you reset password because of such unwarranted SMS, emails or phone calls, and lose access to your Facebook account, DO NOT WORRY! Facebook can help you get your account back. Go to https://www.facebook.com/hacked and follow their instructions. I hope this information was useful for you. Please feel free to ask should you have any questions on this topic. I will be happy to try and help. Thank you for using TechWelkin.
