UPDATE: Holly Pearson, our publisher, would like to update readers on this story. Below is the breakdown of one of a few emails we received that appear to be phishing emails. The last one we received was on April 30th and we wrote this story the next day on May 1st. Looks like our FB went live on April 17th. We received 4 emails on April 29 and 30, all similar to below, each from a different gmail address. Email headers indicate it likely did come from Google email servers.
We are happy to report, we have not received any further phishing emails matching this format. Of course, we can’t know who might have sent the emails. It certainly could be random hackers that send these emails to everyone all the time. But since they stopped as soon as we published this article detailing the messages, we wonder if someone who read the story was sending the emails and decided to stop. Sending a fake Meta emails could get someone in real trouble. Those emails go to servers all around the country so definitely a FEDERAL OFFENSE. And attempting to silence a journalist with said emails makes it a huge CIVIL RIGHTS issue of course. Unfortunately we can’t find out who is behind these emails and IP addresses without doing some work. Here they are:
mm770323583@gmail.com
Received: from desktop-j7ph8ug.domain ([2804:14c:8386:846b:80ff:992a:6c5e:76bf]) Brazil residential no vpn
vlforestero@gmail.com
Received: from desktop-ugtniva.domain (213.21.38.204.dynamic-pppoe.dt.ipv4.wtnet.de.
[213.21.38.204]) Germany residential no vpn
lcastromeneses@gmail.com
Received: from desktop-ugtniva.domain ([179.61.240.158]) New Zealand Data Center, likely VPN
scrimger09753421@gmail.com
Received: from desktop-ugtniva.domain (adsl-178-39-39-160.adslplus.ch. [178.39.39.160]) Switzerland residential no vpn
The original story follows:
Here at Big Bend Times Dot Org, the best and now only Big Bend Times, we get emails. We have so much engagement on social media and here on the site, as well as via email. The other day we received a concerning message. The body of the email appeared to come from Meta and be related to our page on FB, Big Bend Times Dot Org. The text:
***************************************
Meta Platforms
Dear Big Bend Times Dot Org,
We are writing to inform you of serious violations that have been detected in your recent advertising activities. After receiving feedback from users and conducting internal checks, we have found that some of your advertising content has signs of violating the platform policy. To ensure a transparent and reputable advertising environment, you need to urgently review and handle the following two issues.
Advertising Products of Unknown Origin
- Some of the products you have included in your advertising content do not provide sufficient evidence of clear origin. This may cause misunderstandings that the products are genuine, while the authentic information lacks transparency. Such promotion goes against the regulations on trust and can reduce consumer trust.
Brand Logo Image Copyright
- In addition, your advertisement uses brand identity elements (such as logos, symbols) without the consent of the parent unit. This can easily lead to confusion for viewers and does not guarantee intellectual property rights. We ask that you stop this behavior to avoid unwanted consequences.
Action Required:
- Immediately pause all related campaigns.
- Review all advertising content to ensure compliance with regulations on product origin and brand ownership.
- If you believe there is an error in the above assessment, please submit a review request within 03 working days.
Request Review Link
Important Note: Failure to comply on time may result in restrictions on ad access or account suspension.
We appreciate your cooperation in protecting a fair and honest advertising environment.
Sincerely,
Meta Platforms, Inc.
Community Support | Address: 1 Facebook Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025
This is an automated email. Please do not reply.
************************************
The text above that says “Request Review Link” appeared as a button in the email. The link is: https://fb10099922397968-zmvvltqs2gwnghy3xdvx1dgnxzreohtybyeq.vercel.app/vdcbsh354wqhw3r4qhjn46t.html
Side Note: If you find our reporting useful, please consider donating! https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-local-journalism-support-big-bend-times
That does not appear to be a Meta link. The from address in the email is: “Meta: Intellectual property, including copyrights and trademarks, needs precise protection. lcastromeneses@gmail.com” One may notice that’s not a Meta email address, it’s just some gmail address.
This email appears to be a forged Meta support email with a suspicious link. If one runs that link through various link checkers, the page come up as safe. We have not clicked the link as we believe it is a trap of some sort. It’s a shame because there’s just no telling who would want to try and trick us this way. I just can’t think of one single person who would be motivated to do such a thing.
