FB users warned vs. Emma Watson ‘nude photos’ hoax

Facebook users will have to think twice before clicking on a post that claims to have leaked nude photos of "Harry Potter" actress Emma Watson.

Security vendor Bitdefender said the nude photo scam is part of a new ploy by attackers to spread malware on the giant social network.

"The alleged sexy videos of the British actress drop more Trojans than actual pictures and, just as in many other sex tape scams, users don’t get to see the promised content," Bitdefender's Bianca Stanescu said.

She said the scam follows two weeks after a nude photo leak threat against Watson turned out to be a hoax.

Users who fall for the Facebook scam and click on the link may be vulnerable to Trojans that search for personal data such as phone numbers.

The malware can also steal tokens of legitimate apps and hijack Facebook sessions, she said.

Also, she said malware writers can also subscribe victims to premium SMS scams.

"It all starts with a Facebook comment promising to reveal private or leaked videos of Watson. The comments are automatically posted by users infected with the malware. As in many Facebook scams, victims end up as marketers for cyber-crooks," Stanescu said.

As in past scams, users who click on the malicious links are redirected to a salacious YouTube copycat.

"Future victims are then asked to update their Flash Player, as an error allegedly prevents them from watching the leaked videos of Emma Watson," she said. — Joel Locsin /LBG, GMA News