Is the Facebook Settlement Legit?

If you’ve been reading my blogs for a while, you know that I’m vigilant about proactive cybersecurity. You’ll save time, stress and resources if you can avoid any fraud, scams and hacks.

I’ve discussed Facebook’s (now Meta’s) multitude of privacy breaches, and I advise my clients not to utilize Facebook Messenger. I removed that app from my phone several years ago to prevent data mining.

I’ve cautioned about not opening every single email. Instead:

*If your email platform allows, peek at the Sender’s email address without opening the email to see if the message is actually coming from that person or company.

*Check the Sender name and Subject line for correct English and spelling.

*Read the preview text (if you don’t have this option turned on, I encourage you to do so) to check for proper standard English.

I’ve also warned about emails sounding too good to be true are probably scams. Never click on links from within a text or email. Instead, look up the company website and contact them through that platform.

When I received an email about a settlement for a class action lawsuit against Facebook, I deleted it. I figured it was an attempt at a phishing scam. I received a couple more. I admired their persistence, then deleted them.

Lo’ and behold, last week I heard an interview with Omar Gallaga, a tech writer for magazines including Wired and Texas Monthly, and someone whose advice I’ve found helpful over the years. He initially thought the same way, but he did some digging. It turns out there really is a settlement!

For details on the legitimate website to use for filing your claim (which must be filed by August 25, 2023), follow his instructions here:

Omar’s interview + synopsis of claim details

Note:

Your only required information is your name, address and email address connected to your Facebook account. You do not need to share your phone number. Additionally, for extra protection, when you select your method to receive payment, you might want to choose an option other than sharing your bank account information.

If you don’t scrub your device daily of tracking cookies and browser history nor log out of every app or website you log into nor use a malware tracker to scan your system daily, you’re most likely being tracked, which means you’ll receive texts or emails with similar verbiage to the Facebook settlement. This is why you should be aware that legitimate emails related to your claim will come from the domain name: facebookuserprivacysettlement.com/. Emails from other domain names might be shady.

How much money will you receive? It’s unclear at this time, but since the process takes less than five minutes, submitting a claim would make a great way to procrastinate productively!

For more ways to procrastinate productively, take a look at The Inefficiency Assassin: Time Management Tactics for Working Smarter, Not Longer