With more people working remotely and shopping online than ever before, social media scam has become more prevalent which is significantly rising in recent years, largely because of how easy and cheap it is to create a fake Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp or Twitter account dedicated to illicit activities.

Here are tips to identify and protect yourself from online scams:

1. Beware of the click bait: Scammers have been known to posts links that attract attention. The links however end up directing you to malicious websites similar to those used in a giveaway or contests. It might look like a legit website but it later demands you to share your credentials, personal or family information, credit cards. Be careful not to fall prey for such a serious scam.

2. Protect your accounts: If you do not secure your social media accounts, you are susceptible to being scammed through that unprotected account. With unprotected accounts, you give scammers free access to gain control of your accounts and use them to scam your friends and family too.

3. Beware of quick-and-easy-ways-to-make-money sites. These sites make you lose money fast and still get nothing in return. Apart from that, these sites may also make you criminally liable especially when you have referred someone.

4- Beware of impostors and impersonators: Scammers often create fake accounts using the details of your real friends to deceive you into falling for their fraudulent acts. To avoid this, always check the details of the person you are chatting, connecting with or accepting as a friend or follower on social media. For further confirmation, you may decide to make a voice or video call to your relative before sending them that money.

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