Facebook users beware. You may get a message from an online “Friend” who is traveling overseas and needs money NOW. And Facebook isn’t much help. I guess Sean Cafferky, ParkerHayden’s new media director, is right when he said, “You get what you pay for.”

I was traveling in Austin when on an early Sunday morning, I get a message from a friend I hadn’t spoken to in a few years suddenly sends me a Facebook Chat. Here’s how the conversation went:

Laura Hey how are you?

11:13am

Mark Hey, there, how have you been?

11:14am

Laura not too good at the moment

11:16am

Mark I’m good. In Austin today with my girls coming back from college road trip. We toured UNT in Denton, TX State and UTSA.

How come? What’s going on?

11:18am

Laura We are stranded here in london We were mugged last night at a gun point

11:18am

Mark Is everyone okay? Do you need anything? My sister-in-law knows someone in Wimbledon (I was sitting in my brother- and sister-in-law’s kitchen while I was online)

11:20am

Laura yeah, just some few bruises in my husband (“in?” first red flag)

11:20am

Mark He/they attacked him?

11:21am

Laura No need for that..All we need is some cash to sort out our hotel bills and get a cab to the airport (they needed to create a sense of urgency…it worked)

yeah

11:21am

Mark Do you need someone to send you cash? How much?

11:21am

Laura our return flight leaves in few hours but the hotel manager won’t let go because of our bills

Yeah, all we need is $2000..promise to pay you back as soon as are back

11:22am

Mark Do you have an American Express card? (I was going to give her the 800# for American Express; they’re better at helping people out in these situations)

11:23am

Laura All cash, credit card and cell phone were stolen

11:23am

Mark Will they take Western Union?

11:23am

Laura You can have the money wired to us through western union in my name That will be much faster and easier to pick up here

11:24am

Laura Just send the money in my name, then i will pick it up with my passport as we all still have ours. I will pay the hotel bills and use the rest to get a cab to the airport

11:25am

Mark Quick security question to make sure you’re you: Where were you working when we worked together? (too many red flags; had to ask.)

11:28am

Laura Mark, i am not in the mood for questions and answers at the moment I can’t think straight at the moment (HUGE red flag; this was a very simple, easy question.)

11:29am

Mark I’m sorry. But you need to answer the question. (There was no way I was going to keep going until she answered the question).

11:31am

Laura I was managing my own work before I started work for Xxxxx Group (WRONG!)

11:32am

Mark Okay, where was I working? (I had opened up another browser and was sending an email to London police; I also was talking to Western Union who was about as helpful as tits on a boar.)

11:33am

Laura mark, if you know that you aren’t willing to help me, then say it loud I have answered your first question, why this second question again

11:34am

Mark I’m sorry. Where did your kids go to grade school? (Not sure why, but I was trying to keep her online until I figured out what to do; too much CSI? Maybe.)

11:34am

Laura Katy (WRONG again!)

11:35am

Mark What’s the name of the school?

11:35am

Laura why all this questions You are meant to know that ii’s me (“meant” to know is right.)

ok

Foster in Lamar XXXX & Naval Academy (WRONG yet again!)

Are you there?

?

11:38am

Mark Okay, stand by. What name should I send it to? (Obviously I didn’t send shit.)

11:38am

Laura To my name (Laura xxxx) and to my current location (London)

11:40am

Mark Okay. Go to the Western Union. The money will be there in about 30 minutes.Which location will you be at?

11:40am

Laura All you need is my location and that is London

11:42am

Laura Mark, when you are through with the transaction, kindly sent the transfer details to me either here if i am still on to my email address lauraxxxxxx@ymail.com (Wow. You’ve done this before.)

11:43am

Mark Got it. Stand by

As soon as this was over, I cut and pasted it into a Word doc. Then I sent it to fraud@Facebook.com. I got a really nice auto-response from them. The following day, I got a call from Laura who confirmed that it was not her. She freaked out a little and canceled her Facebook account. I don’t blame her.

Facebook needs to more to make their site more secure. They have hundreds of million users now and advertisers who pay to reach them. If they don’t do more to protect their users, they could lose both. And then we won’t know who’s eating pie anymore.

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