Story:
TERRIBLE ROLLER COASTER ACCIDENT!
99% Can’t Watch More Than 15 Seconds
Other Versions
1. OMG! Theme Park accident in Alton Towers United Kingdom
Rollercoaster Accident in United Kingdom
Check this @: [LINK]
This has just been leaked!
2. MOST TERRIFYING ACCIDENT EVER! Woman Falls 220ft Roller Coaster
3. OMG! – Theme Park accident in Universal Studios Hollywood
4. HORRIFIC Roller Coaster Accident! In Universal Studios
5. HORRIFIC! – Summertime Theme Park Australia
6. Rollercoaster Accident in California!
7. Rollercoaster Accident in United Kingdom
8. ACCIDENT! – 89% Cant Watch It Rollercoaster Accident in Australia
Analysis:
Facebook users have been seeing these posts on timeline that appear to have been shared by their friends, and they claim to link to a video of a terrible roller coaster accident. As mentioned above, such claims have been circulating on Facebook with various titles, like a roller coaster accident happened in Universal Studios, California and elsewhere.
The Facebook posts come with snapshot of a roller coaster accident, asking the user to click on the image to view the terrifying video footage. The users who clicked on such links were taken to a faux Facebook page, and when they tried to play the video embedded there, they were tricked into the usual Facebook scamming of liking, sharing and/or completing surveys – from which the cybercriminals benefit. In some cases, the users were also required to approve a rogue application to view the video, which will repost the same message on your own Facebook wall without your knowledge, and this is how the scam spreads. Moreover, users may also be tricked into giving away their sensitive personal information, and sometimes, may also install malicious software. There is no such video showing any terrible roller coaster accident.
About the Picture
The snapshot image in the original story is certainly photoshopped, and is perhaps used to describe the ‘roller coaster phobia,’ like this one in Worth1000 photo contest. While roller coaster accidents like this are rare, but do happen, scammers often come up with false claims like this to take advantage of unsuspecting Facebook users.
Similar Claim
Another similar scam titled ‘DEATH IN LIVE SHOW!! No one ever thought this could happen. IMPOSSIBLE!!!‘ keeps circulating on Facebook. As shown in the Image Gallery, the Facebook post comes with the snapshot of a startled woman, as a video that supposedly shows unexpected death of a contestant in a live show. The post also misleads the users mentioning thousands of viewers have shared the video.
Again, there will be no such video showing death of contestant in a live show. The image actually shows a woman judge in America’s Got Talent show getting surprised over a six-year-old contestant while she was screaming about zombies.
What to Do
If you see such posts on your Facebook wall or timeline, do not click, like, share or comment on it; delete them instead. This kind of scamming has become quite common these days, so make sure you remove all such posts from your wall and also any rogue Facebook apps you may have installed from the Apps section of your Account Settings.
Remember, whenever you come across any such unbelievable news that asks you to approve a third party Facebook application, you don’t have to do it, instead, you can simply check for the news on a legitimate news website.
Hoax or Fact:
Hoax, and a Scam.
References:
Theme Park accident video used as bait by Facebook viral scammers
‘Death In Live Show – No One Ever Thought This Could Happen’ is a Facebook Scam
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