The Sims 5626

March 23 Update: Another variant of the Sims scam is appearing. The numbers will change from person to person, (i.e., Sims 9242, Sims 3876) but the app name is now appearing as “game-simulation” as in http://apps.facebook.com/game-simulation/ and oddly, the non-working link of http://apps.facebook.com//. This is likely a bad cut and paste.

The Sims scam has made the rounds lately on Facebook. It works exactly like the “Who is checking my profile?” scam I wrote about yesterday. An album appears on the member’s Photos tab with numerous screenshots of the Sims, as if they were screens taken from the game. This is common on Facebook. A number of the Zynga games, including Farmville and Fishville have album creation capabilities.

Notice the anomalies however, that distinguish it from being an actual Sims game on Facebook.

1. The title is always,”Let’s enjoy this game and be one of us.” The broken English should be a giveaway. EA Games would never allow that.
2. The “girls fighting in underwear” screenshot is common. There are four screens that I have come across in this scam, but this one is the most prevalent.
3. Sims 5626. In other words, not The Sims. Author is “Joe Caba”, not EA Games. Joe Caba, by the way, is not a member of Facebook. I checked.
4. Lastly, the ever present, “Try it, really works!!” comment rears its ugly head once again.

TIP: Always check first, if it was a friend who tagged you in a photo before adding any applications. Never assume because a screenshot of a game was used, that the app is from the actual game. It only takes 30 seconds to Google “The Sims” and find out that the Sims is made by EA, not Joe Caba.