Dartmouth Police Warn of New Scammer Tactic on Social Media

DARTMOUTH (WBSM) — Now more than ever, scammers are on the rise, targeting people with links that can cause serious repercussions if we fall for them and click.

Social media platforms, personal emails and even text messages have become unsafe and infiltrated by scammers. Unfortunately, it seems like lately scams have become more creative in their approach.

According to the Dartmouth Police Department, pulling at your "heart strings" is a new way scammers are targeting people.

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The department said that a recent post about a missing and endangered child has been circulating. The location, time and other information changes depending on where the post is shared.

Although something like this seems urgent, authorities are reminding us that these kinds of posts are not real and to take caution if you come across them.

"These types of scammers tug at your heart strings with photos of alleged missing children, injured animals, and other topics," the police department said in a Facebook post.

The post alleges an empathetic situation that continues to be shared in many different areas and locations.

After a large audience reposts it, scammers edit the original post to something else, usually containing a link that the person who shared it is unaware of.

Friends of the person who shared the post can become more vulnerable by clicking the link, "trusting" that it's safe.

Unfortunately, once this happens, personal information can be compromised. Given scammers' operations, it's better not to click suspicious links.