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.
Importance Notice
After considerable thought and with an ache in my heart, I have decided that the time has come to close down the Hoax-Slayer website.These days, the site does not generate enough revenue to cover expenses, and I do not have the financial resources to sustain it going forward.
Moreover, I now work long hours in a full-time and physically taxing job, so maintaining and managing the website and publishing new material has become difficult for me.
And finally, after 18 years of writing about scams and hoaxes, I feel that it is time for me to take my fingers off the keyboard and focus on other projects and pastimes.
When I first started Hoax-Slayer, I never dreamed that I would still be working on the project all these years later or that it would become such an important part of my life. It's been a fantastic and engaging experience and one that I will always treasure.
I hope that my work over the years has helped to make the Internet a little safer and thwarted the activities of at least a few scammers and malicious pranksters.
A Big Thank You
I would also like to thank all of those wonderful people who have supported the project by sharing information from the site, contributing examples of scams and hoaxes, offering suggestions, donating funds, or helping behind the scenes.I would especially like to thank David White for his tireless contribution to the Hoax-Slayer Facebook Page over many years. David's support has been invaluable, and I can not thank him enough.
Closing Date
Hoax-Slayer will still be around for a few weeks while I wind things down. The site will go offline on May 31, 2021. While I will not be publishing any new posts, you can still access existing material on the site until the date of closure.Thank you, one and all!
Brett Christensen,
Hoax-Slayer
