The Different ways to tell if a Facebook profile is Fake

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I created and run a local  swap group on Facebook. We often have fictitious profiles attempting to join the group, usually with ill intentions of posting fraudulent and scam posts such as Duct Cleaning services.

We try to do a good job of vetting member requests, but if one sneaks through and manages to post, the Scam posts are deleted the moment an Admin or Moderator sees it or is notified.

Today I want to inform you of some of the things to look for when vetting a Facebook Profile that are key indicators that a profile is fake. This goes for not only Group Membership Requests, but also Facebook Friend Requests that you may receive.

The Name

A lot of the fake profiles we come across tend to have names that include a middle initial. That in and of itself does not mean it’s fake, but it can be a hint. They also often use very generic names and common first names for both the first and last names. For example, one we had recently was “Christy K Domanic”.

Profile Photos

This one is hard to describe, but the profile photos they choose to use and the other photos they post just look too generic. Usually, you will see a quality photo of a happy family, children, or animals—typically all posted within a short/recent time frame and are the kind of staged photos that could easily be acquired by doing a google image search.

Their friends and the people/groups they follow

Even if the profile says that they are from or live in “Sioux City” (or another local city), I take a look at their friend list. I might find that they have hundreds of friends that reside in the middle east. Or if many (if not all) of the groups they follow are in Arabic--chances are they are NOT the “David T Matthew” that they claim to be.

People who like their posts are suspicious

I’ve come across profiles that look legitimate or only slightly fishy (in the example below he’s literally holding a giant fish), just as the one mentioned above, but if you look at a few of their posts and the people who like or comment on them, they are also all from the middle east.

The Profile address in the address bar

Most of the time the profile address will display an address unique profile ID, such as facebook/profile.php?id=243716354. These are assigned by Facebook, but you can modify your address to be your name, or something else unique to you.

Sometimes, scammers forget to change their address to match their fictitious profile name. For example, David T Matthew’s address might display as facebook/ahmad.fadel

Below are some example photos, one of which was a fake profile we recently denied. Then they joined another Le Mars swap and proceeded to post duct cleaning scams.