Around two years ago we announced our partnership with Facebook in their initiative to protect their now 1.3 billion users from threats. Back then, our efforts were focused on malicious websites, especially those related to threats like survey scams.
This year, we’re glad to announce that we’ve collaborated with Facebook on yet another way to ensure Facebook users remain secure: HouseCall for Facebook. We worked with Facebook to develop a custom-made version of the award-winning free malware scanner offered by Trend Micro.
How does this work? HouseCall for Facebook is a tool made available for users whose accounts have been observed by Facebook to exhibit suspicious activities. This may include posting malicious links, or sending out spam messages. If your account has been flagged, you will receive a notification from Facebook to scan your system for any possible malware infection.
The process is pretty simple and does not affect your Facebook experience at all. Should users get the notification, they just need to click Accept and allow HouseCall for Facebook to do its job. The user will later receive another notification that says that the scan is done and that the system has been cleaned. It’s that easy!
A message for users though: It’s important to remember that it is you who can best protect your Facebook account. If you receive the notification to scan your system, this is because you’ve clicked malicious links in the past. To best avoid this, be careful when clicking links, regardless of who posted them.
To read more about Facebook and HouseCall, click here.
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