The Facebook Scam “Secret Sister Gift Exchange” has been identified on various social networks offering a gift exchange wherein the users will need to send money. In return they are offered many lucrative gifts which are are never received. The practice is considered illegal in many states and countries as gambling and participating in it can lead to many fraud issues. Our overview shows the indications of the scam and how potential targets can protect themselves.
Threat Summary
| Name | Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" |
| Type | Scam Message on Facebook |
| Short Description | The Facebook Scam “Secret Sister Gift Exchange” coerces the targets into sending money and gifts. |
| Symptoms | Fraud financial transactions and malware infections |
| Distribution Method | Fake or hacked Facebook messages, current infections are done via Facebook |
| Detection Tool |
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| User Experience | Join Our Forum to Discuss Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange". |
Facebook Scam “Secret Sister Gift Exchange” – Overview
The Facebook Scam “Secret Sister Gift Exchange” is being distributed mainly through social networks — Facebook in particular. The criminals make use of hacked accounts or ones specially created for the occasion.
The main concept of the hackers behind it is that this is a modified version of the “Secret Santa” gifts exchange, popular in Facebook groups and Reddit communities. Participating users will need to send a gift to an anonymous user and in exchange they will receive many times more an item. The scammers will coordinate the process on Facebook. However in this case the participating users are coerced into sending out money ($10). The links sent through the social networks redirect to a landing page or a payment gateway.
Such actions are considered gambling and in many states in countries is illegal.
It is very possible that these scams can be distributed via email phishing messages as well. They are conduits for many types of scams and can be designed as being sent by a legitimate and trusted source. Examples might be charities, well-known companies, online services or representatives of celebrities.
Successful scams can lead to crimes such as identity theft and financial abuse. The information can be harvested in databases and used at later stages with blackmail intent. Further troubles comes with the fact that the landing pages can lead to dangerous virus infections. Depending on the acquired infection the users may be able to partially restore their computers. In other cases only advanced anti-spyware solutions will remedy the affected hosts. Refer to our in-depth instructions for more information.
Future versions can make use of scam calls and other phishing tactics. They can have a higher chance of infecting users.
Remove Secret Sister Gift Scam
To remove the Secret Sister Gift Exchange scam you should simply delete the email message. However, if you are truly breached and you recognize any of the listed passwords, you should see the step-by-step removal instructions provided below. In case you can not get rid of files related to the scam or find out other malicious ones, you should search for and remove any leftover malware pieces with an advanced anti-malware tool. Software like that will keep your system secure in the future.
Martin Beltov
Martin graduated with a degree in Publishing from Sofia University. As a cyber security enthusiast he enjoys writing about the latest threats and mechanisms of intrusion.
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- Guide 1: How to Remove Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Windows.
- Guide 2: Get rid of Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Mac OS X.
- Guide 3: Remove Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Google Chrome.
- Guide 4: Erase Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Mozilla Firefox.
- Guide 5: Uninstall Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Microsoft Edge.
- Guide 6: Remove Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Safari.
- Guide 7: Eliminate Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Internet Explorer.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
How to Remove Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Windows.
Step 1: Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange"
Step 2: Uninstall Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" and related software from Windows
Here is a method in few easy steps that should be able to uninstall most programs. No matter if you are using Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista or XP, those steps will get the job done. Dragging the program or its folder to the recycle bin can be a very bad decision. If you do that, bits and pieces of the program are left behind, and that can lead to unstable work of your PC, errors with the file type associations and other unpleasant activities. The proper way to get a program off your computer is to Uninstall it. To do that:
Follow the instructions above and you will successfully uninstall most programs.
Step 3: Clean any registries, created by Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" on your computer.
The usually targeted registries of Windows machines are the following:
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
You can access them by opening the Windows registry editor and deleting any values, created by Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:
Tip: To find a virus-created value, you can right-click on it and click "Modify" to see which file it is set to run. If this is the virus file location, remove the value.
Before starting "Step 4", please boot back into Normal mode, in case you are currently in Safe Mode.
This will enable you to install and use SpyHunter 5 successfully.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Get rid of Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Mac OS X.
Step 1: Uninstall Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" and remove related files and objects
1. Hit the ⇧+⌘+U keys to open Utilities. Another way is to click on “Go” and then click “Utilities”, like the image below shows:
- Go to Finder.
- In the search bar type the name of the app that you want to remove.
- Above the search bar change the two drop down menus to “System Files” and “Are Included” so that you can see all of the files associated with the application you want to remove. Bear in mind that some of the files may not be related to the app so be very careful which files you delete.
- If all of the files are related, hold the ⌘+A buttons to select them and then drive them to “Trash”.
In case you cannot remove Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" via Step 1 above:
In case you cannot find the virus files and objects in your Applications or other places we have shown above, you can manually look for them in the Libraries of your Mac. But before doing this, please read the disclaimer below:
You can repeat the same procedure with the following other Library directories:
→ ~/Library/LaunchAgents
/Library/LaunchDaemons
Tip: ~ is there on purpose, because it leads to more LaunchAgents.
Step 2: Scan for and remove Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" files from your Mac
When you are facing problems on your Mac as a result of unwanted scripts and programs such as Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange", the recommended way of eliminating the threat is by using an anti-malware program. SpyHunter for Mac offers advanced security features along with other modules that will improve your Mac’s security and protect it in the future.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Remove Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Google Chrome.
Step 1: Start Google Chrome and open the drop menu
Step 2: Move the cursor over "Tools" and then from the extended menu choose "Extensions"
Step 3: From the opened "Extensions" menu locate the unwanted extension and click on its "Remove" button.
Step 4: After the extension is removed, restart Google Chrome by closing it from the red "X" button at the top right corner and start it again.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Erase Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Mozilla Firefox.
Step 1: Start Mozilla Firefox. Open the menu window
Step 2: Select the "Add-ons" icon from the menu.
Step 3: Select the unwanted extension and click "Remove"
Step 4: After the extension is removed, restart Mozilla Firefox by closing it from the red "X" button at the top right corner and start it again.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Uninstall Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Microsoft Edge.
Step 1: Start Edge browser.
Step 2: Open the drop menu by clicking on the icon at the top right corner.
Step 3: From the drop menu select "Extensions".
Step 4: Choose the suspected malicious extension you want to remove and then click on the gear icon.
Step 5: Remove the malicious extension by scrolling down and then clicking on Uninstall.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Remove Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Safari.
Step 1: Start the Safari app.
Step 2: After hovering your mouse cursor to the top of the screen, click on the Safari text to open its drop down menu.
Step 3: From the menu, click on "Preferences".
Step 4: After that, select the 'Extensions' Tab.
Step 5: Click once on the extension you want to remove.
Step 6: Click 'Uninstall'.
A pop-up window will appear asking for confirmation to uninstall the extension. Select 'Uninstall' again, and the Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" will be removed.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Eliminate Facebook Scam "Secret Sister Gift Exchange" from Internet Explorer.
Step 1: Start Internet Explorer.
Step 2: Click on the gear icon labeled 'Tools' to open the drop menu and select 'Manage Add-ons'
Step 3: In the 'Manage Add-ons' window.
Step 4: Select the extension you want to remove and then click 'Disable'. A pop-up window will appear to inform you that you are about to disable the selected extension, and some more add-ons might be disabled as well. Leave all the boxes checked, and click 'Disable'.
Step 5: After the unwanted extension has been removed, restart Internet Explorer by closing it from the red 'X' button located at the top right corner and start it again.
