Authorities in Australia are warning Facebook users not to click on posts promoting an online video streaming service called “MovieFlix”.
The scam post claims that the new movie service is even better than Netflix and is free and that “thousands of people in Australia are cancelling their Netflix subscription” as a result.
It features a screengrab from a supposed TV story about the service and links to a bogus “news” report that offers further details. Here’s what the post looks like:
All links in the “news” report open a sign-up page for the supposedly free service. However, the site claims that you must provide a valid credit card number for “verification” before you can use the service.
And, despite the “free” claims, fine-print in the footer of the signup page states that, after a trial period of 5 days, your credit card will be charged at a rate of $49.95 per month.
Western Australia’s ConsumerProtectionWA has posted the following tweet warning about the scam:
Don’t spoil ‘Netflix and chill’ plans this weekend by signing up to a fake streaming service. Beware an ad on Facebook that claims to be promoting ‘MovieFlix’ but is a phishing scam designed to steal credit card details. If you provided yours, watch your accounts or cancel cards. pic.twitter.com/WdRYhJMaC0
— ConsumerProtectionWA (@ConsumerWA) May 24, 2019
South Australian Police have also tweeted a warning:
“A better service than Netflix… and it’s free for Australians!”? Yeah, nah, it’s not.
An advertisement for MovieFlix has been doing the rounds on social media, but don’t be fooled, it is actually an elaborate ploy to steal your credit card details. https://t.co/zxNRSKmd38 pic.twitter.com/muFxsQHpi5
— South Australia Police (@SAPoliceNews) July 4, 2019
If the scam post crosses your News feed, don’t click on it. And let your friends know that the post is a scam.
