Please help me reactivate my Facebook account - 419 scam :(

Two days ago Facebook deactivated my account because they believed that someone hacked into it to use the Money Transfer (419) Scam. I was sent the following email:

Your account has been temporarily suspended for security purposes. Our systems indicate that your Facebook account may have been compromised by cybercriminals attempting to impersonate you. These criminals often will try to trick your friends into sending them money by claiming that you are stuck in a far away location and need assistance. It is likely that your email account was compromised as well. As such, we have sent this email to all email addresses recently associated with your account. Obtaining access to a victim's email is one of the primary ways these cybercriminals have been operating. Please take the following steps to regain control of your account:
1. Password Reset: Select new and unique passwords for all of your email addresses. Do not use the same password for different online accounts as this allows hackers to easily gain access to your other accounts, such as Facebook, once one account has been compromised.
2. Email Preferences: Check the Preferences/Settings of your email account to make sure the scammer did not add any unauthorized forwarding rules to your email. This is becoming a common practice for scammers to use, so it is important that you complete this extra step. If you need further assistance with this, please contact your email provider.
Once you have secured your email account, respond to this email with the following:
- The steps you have taken to secure your email account (do not include password information)
- A detailed description of your current profile picture
- A short list of the most recent activity on your account
- Any contact information (location to send money, email address) provided to your friends by the scammer, if available
Be sure to closely follow these instructions and respond to this email. This security step must be completed before Facebook can begin the account verification process.


I followed their instructions immediately, but have had no reply, and my account is still deactivated. I am really worried that I'll never get it back. Please help me!

Worried and slightly irritated Facebook user

This person has the same result. Ruby explained what she told the person to do. here is the link [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Firstly; important...what if any is the Protection on that computer you use to access Facebook ?

Do you still have access to and can you still send and receive emails using the email address you have associated with Facebook?

Send yourself an email...do you get it back ?



This link

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]


Can help you to speak to Facebook if you give them a land line Phone number for Facebook to speak with you direct....

Thank you for your response Ruby.

I have Avast anti-virus software on my computer, which is the same software I have had for years without any problems with Facebook.

I still have access to and can receive and send emails from all of the email accounts associated with my Facebook account, and have changed all the passwords for these email accounts, as requested by Facebook.

I tried the link that you suggested for resetting my Facebook password, but it will not allow me to do this: I keep receiving the same response: 'Your account has been deactivated due to the scam etc...'

I currently have no landline number but have a mobile number that I believe Facebook has access to.

I appreciate any other help you can give me

I still have access to and can receive and send emails from all of the email accounts associated with my Facebook account, and have changed all the passwords for these email accounts, as requested by Facebook.

So these are safe?

but have a mobile number that I believe Facebook has access to.

If you use that Facebook can contact you on that via

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Just put the number in but with the full country and area code;

I am searching for answers and my best guess is..have you been chatting with anyone on Facebook about a long lost relative? ?

Of interest, can you be 'found' by a search on Facebook by any means?
Lets cover all bases!!

Please run these two scans

Disclaimer; Run at your own risk

Please download [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] and save it to your desktop.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

MBAM may "make changes to your registry" as part of its disinfection routine. If using other security programs that detect registry changes , they may interfere or alert you.

• Make sure you are connected to the Internet.
  
• Double-click on mbam-setup.exe to install the application.
  
  
• When the installation begins, follow the prompts and do not make any changes to default settings.
  
• When installation has finished, make sure you leave both of these checked:
  
  
  • Update Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
    
  • Launch Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
  
  
• Then click Finish.

MBAM will automatically start and you will be asked to update the program before performing a scan.

• If an update is found, the program will automatically update itself. Press the OK button to close that box and continue.
  

On the Scanner tab:

• Make sure the "Perform Quick Scan" option is selected.
  
• Then click on the Scan button.
  
• If asked to select the drives to scan, leave all the drives selected and click on the Start Scan button.
  
• The scan will begin and "Scan in progress" will show at the top. It may take some time to complete so please be patient.
  
• When the scan is finished, a message box will say "The scan completed successfully. Click 'Show Results' to display all objects found".
  
• Click OK to close the message box and continue with the removal process.

Back at the main Scanner screen:

• Click on the Show Results button to see a list of any malware that was found.
  
• Make sure that everything is checked, and click Remove Selected.
  
• When removal is completed, a log report will open in Notepad.
  
• The log is automatically saved and can be viewed by clicking the Logs tab in MBAM.
  
• Copy and paste the contents of that report in your next reply. Be sure to post the complete log to include the top portion which shows MBAM's database version and your operating system.
  
• Exit MBAM when done.

Note: If MBAM encounters a file that is difficult to remove, you will be asked to reboot your computer so MBAM can proceed with the disinfection process. If asked to restart the computer, please do so immediately. Failure to reboot normally (not into safe mode) will prevent MBAM from removing all the malware.

Disclaimer ;Run at your own risk

Next run Superantisypware (SAS):

Download and scan with [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] Free for Home Users

• Double-click SUPERAntiSpyware.exe and use the default settings for installation.
  
• An icon will be created on your desktop. Double-click that icon to launch the program.
  
• If asked to update the program definitions, click "Yes". If not, update the definitions before scanning by selecting "Check for Updates".
  
  
• In the Main Menu, click the Preferences... button.
  
• Click the Scanning Control tab.
  
• Under Scanner Options make sure the following are checked (leave all others unchecked):
  • Close browsers before scanning.
    
  • Scan for tracking cookies.
    
  • Terminate memory threats before quarantining.
• Click the "Close" button to leave the control center screen.
  
• Back on the main screen, under "Scan for Harmful Software" click Scan your computer.
  
• On the left, make sure you check C:\Fixed Drive.
  
• On the right, under "Complete Scan", choose Perform Complete Scan.
  
• Click "Next" to start the scan. Please be patient while it scans your computer.
  
• After the scan is complete, a Scan Summary box will appear with potentially harmful items that were detected. Click "OK".
  
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• A notification will appear that "Quarantine and Removal is Complete". Click "OK" and then click the "Finish" button to return to the main menu.
  
• If asked if you want to reboot, click "Yes".
  
• To retrieve the removal information after reboot, launch SUPERAntispyware again.
  • Click Preferences, then click the Statistics/Logs tab.
    
  • Under Scanner Logs, double-click SUPERAntiSpyware Scan Log.
    
  • If there are several logs, click the current dated log and press View log. A text file will open in your default text editor.
    
  • Please copy and paste the Scan Log results in your next reply.
• Click Close to exit the program.

Run correctly this scan may take up to 8 or more hours to run so be patient

.

Is running scans on Avast not effective then?

My email addresses are safe.

I have not been chatting to anyone on Facebook about a long lost relative or about being stuck in a faraway location and needing money.

I cannot be found by anyone on Facebook through searches. It's like I simply no longer exist

andrianamatsangou wrote:Is running scans on Avast not effective then?

Excellent question and good to ask it; Avast is an Antivirus Program; we are looking for any Malware that may be hiding on the computer and these two scans are currently the first- line of attack to scan for possible infections on computers....

It would be good to run them ... if only to eliminate an infection as the cause of your problem please

My email addresses are safe.

...good!!!!! One less thing to worry about!! ( unless the scans show up an infection )

I have not been chatting to anyone on Facebook about a long lost relative or about being stuck in a faraway location and needing money.

OK so it is not by Chat that this has happened

I cannot be found by anyone on Facebook through searches. It's like I simply no longer exist

Is that by a search with any of the email addresses you have associated with the Facebook account ?

I ran full Avast, Malwarebytes Antimalware and SUPERantispyware scans and the only thing that came up were internet cookies which were quarantined/deleted or whatever they do with them!

I did however receive a reply from Facebook finally -

Facebook User Operations has received your inquiry. Stand by as we should be back with you soon. In the meantime, we encourage you to review our 'Help' page (https://www.facebook.com/help.php). You'll find lots of information about Facebook as well as many answers to your questions. Check out the FAQs on the Support page too.

And another one in response to a 419 scam form I filled out after that basically saying the same thing plus:

Finally, note that writing in multiple times will not result in a faster response. Once you submit your initial request, it is placed in a queue and responded to accordingly. We appreciate your patience.

Doesn't really inspire much confidence, I still think I'll be waiting a long time

andrianamatsangou wrote:
I did however receive a reply from Facebook finally -

Facebook User Operations has received your inquiry. Stand by as we should be back with you soon. In the meantime, we encourage you to review our 'Help' page (https://www.facebook.com/help.php). You'll find lots of information about Facebook as well as many answers to your questions. Check out the FAQs on the Support page too.

And another one in response to a 419 scam form I filled out after that basically saying the same thing plus:

Finally, note that writing in multiple times will not result in a faster response. Once you submit your initial request, it is placed in a queue and responded to accordingly. We appreciate your patience.

Doesn't really inspire much confidence, I still think I'll be waiting a long time

This news is better than none!!

Do you wish to leave this open pro temp ...or re-post if you do not hear from Facebook or get back into the Account?

I'll just post a quick reply in this discussion in like a week so say whether I regained access or whether I'm still waiting. Thanks for your help

From what I know of this '419 scam' I think it worth asking you if you do on- line Banking and if so have you checked your Bank account recently?

Yes I do, but there have been no suspicious transactions. Why, have you heard of people's bank accounts being hacked linked to this?

The scam is linked to the 'Computer world' to which I 'belong' and is where I first came across this

Numerous money transferring schemes originate via email or rogue web sites. These scam artists are intent on persuading individuals into providing bank account details to receive stolen money; funds thieved from other unknowing online banking consumers.

The growing number of Trojan and keylogging exploits has contributed to consumers having their banking details captured via internet. When this information becomes known, the offenders typically look for a foreign bank account to the laundry the money through. Once the money has been transferred, the account holder is then instructed to keep the negotiated commission and pass the remaining funds to a previously arranged overseas location.

Falling victim to a money transferring scam puts you at the risk of having your account wiped clean. The best protection is to never reply; if not, you will more than likely encourage future attempts.

One might ask...are you sure you logged into Facebook and not a rogue site that set this all off?



Can you pull up the Malwarebytes scan report for a 'look- see' to see what might be on there?

How do you communicate with people on Facebook?Have you had any odd messages? or even in your Email ???

But how do they even get hold of online bank account details?

Come to think of it, a couple of times I think I logged on through LivingSocial.com. Do you think that could have been it? Often I share videos through youtube but I doubt that's it...

I looked into Malwarebytes but couldn't find reports of the scan I did. Nothing came up in the scan though.

I communicate through Facebook chat, wall-to-wall, comments, inbox messaging, everything. No sign of any odd messages from what I can remember.

I get lots of junk mail which I never open, plus I used to receive lots of emails from 'friends' whose email addresses have obviously been hijacked by a company to forward advertising messages. I always deleted these before opening them.

Today however, I looked in my sent messages and found that I had apparently sent out one of these 'advertising' messages myself to everyone in my address book, on a single date in September and then on a single date October. I had never seen that before. I deleted all of them. Obviously since then I have changed my password so it is now secure.

I have deleted my on-line banking account altogether. Still no word from Facebook after their email acknowledgement so not entirely sure what's going on yet

Have you ever heard of Facebook reactivated an account after a 419 scam?

Question ; do you have any P2P file sharing programs installed?

Today however, I looked in my sent messages and found that I had apparently sent out one of these 'advertising' messages myself to everyone in my address book, on a single date in September and then on a single date October. I had never seen that before. I deleted all of them. Obviously since then I have changed my password so it is now secure.

Is this via the Facebook Account or your email address?

a

couple of times I think I logged on through LivingSocial.com

Logged on to what ? Surely not to access Facebook ?

I have no P2P file sharing programs installed. A did download a couple of songs a few weeks ago from hulkshare.com though. I deleted them a few days ago. Just ran more scans on my computer, nothing found.

Sorry those messages were sent via my email address - I can't access my facebook account at all. I can't even log in.

With Livingsocial.com (a website that offers daily discounts), instead of creating an account there is an option to log in with Facebook. However you can see that the button and picture used is the facebook image so I would click on that, put in my facebook password and it takes you in to facebook that way and you can then use the site through facebook. I have also changed my password on livingsocial just in case.

A did download a couple of songs a few weeks ago from hulkshare.com though

May one guess you did not virus etc scan the items prior to download?

What is your OS and do you have System Restore enabled?

Sorry those messages were sent via my email address

So the email program sent out Spam?

Would you be averse to getting the computer checked out by Experts on another site who can run more thorough and deep scans than we can do here to make sure nowt is missed?

No, I did not scan the items prior to download. But I think Facebook was saying that they accessed my profile through my email account so I guess it wouldn't be from downloading songs?

Sorry, I have no idea what OS and System Restore are?!

Yes the email program sent out spam on two occasions - in once in Sept and once in Oct 2010.

What site is it that runs these scans?

I think in your case it is worth getting some Specialists to check out the machine to make sure no infection is on there

I will PM you the detail of several and you can make your own choice; do be warned that, due to the nature of these Forums they will expect you to keep track of the work they give you to do and reply to the thread you start within a specified time period

Once you are Registered with one of them we will need to close this thread as it is not permitted to have help on the same problem on more than one forum where infections are concerned


Please post back on here when you have made your choice and what username you have got on the forum so you can be found and your progress monitored on the other forum

So all the anti-virus/malware/spyware software that I currently have on my computer is not enough?

How will I know that whoever these Specialists are, are genuine?

andrianamatsangou wrote:So all the anti-virus/malware/spyware software that I currently have on my computer is not enough?

How will I know that whoever these Specialists are, are genuine?

From what you have said, I think you need to have some more 'intense' and deeper looking scans than you have already done and some diagnostic tools run on it that cannot be run on this forum;

The details of Specialist forums I an advising you to go to are those who I for one will trust to clean my machine and are extremely reputable,; I can assure you they are trustworthy or I would not send anyone to them for help ...
Do you not wish to do this then?

Hello there...I was disabled almost 2 weeks ago due to the 419 Scam...Ruby was kind enough to link to my thread in the first post.

I have sent a myriad of emails with no response. I never even got a response to the form you are asked to fill out for reactivation. So...kudos on your automated response!

I am still disabled. There does not appear to be any method to contact Facebook and have the account reactivated.

This weekend will make it 2.5 weeks without FB. I'm planning on restarting my digital social life then...from what I've read on the internet it is not hopeful that we will get our accounts returned to us. If you find any methods or are reactivated...please let me know.

Thanks and best of luck.

It's such a shame, very irritating to lose however many years of memories/photos/videos/contacts that you'll never get back. I've got the same kind of negative feedback about this whole thing. Really seems now that we'll have to just get new accounts (even though they asked us not to because they said it may slow the process down?)

If I have any luck with getting my account back I'll post it on here. Please let me know if you get yours back too, it would give me hope! Good luck!

Ruby - I think I might leave the deeper scans for now, I may come back to them at another time. Thank you so much for trying to help me!

andrianamatsangou wrote:It's such a shame, very irritating to lose however many years of memories/photos/videos/contacts that you'll never get back. I've got the same kind of negative feedback about this whole thing. Really seems now that we'll have to just get new accounts (even though they asked us not to because they said it may slow the process down?)

If I have any luck with getting my account back I'll post it on here. Please let me know if you get yours back too, it would give me hope! Good luck!

Ruby - I think I might leave the deeper scans for now, I may come back to them at another time. Thank you so much for trying to help me!

Have you yet done as asked and registered with one of the Specialist forums? They can run special scans and tools that can see if your computer has problems ....

If you wish to get your Facebook account back I think it a wise precaution to have the computer thoroughly checked out

If this happened to me I would not hesitate to do so

However, it is your computer and your account........

Guess what?
I lose hope...and my Facebook was returned to me just minutes ago.

I have heard that they can get disabled again after a short period of activation, so I'm not going to get crazy excited about it being back yet. But...for both of our sakes, I hope it's a permanent reactivation!