If the folks behind the photo sharing Web site Pinterest were looking for some validation that their fledgelings social media site had “arrived,” they got it this weekend, after scammers jumped on the site and used it to direct Pinterest users to survey scam Web sites.
Trend Micro researchers report that scammers have launched a number of campaigns on the site to lure victims to a Web site asking them to complete a survey. The scam is similar to those that have long propagated on sites like Facebook, where scammers often jump on big news events, or fabricate news of their own to trick users into filling out the online surveys.
Pinterest is a fast-growing social networking Web site that lets users post and share photos and videos with their friends. According to a post on the Trend Micro Web site, researchers at the firm noticed reposts of photos claiming to be free offers from Starbucks and Coach leather. Upon further examination, those photos linked back to the same survey Web site.
