“Beware of the fake Facebook ‘dislike’ button. As always, we advise you not to click on suspicious links on Facebook. We’re working hard to stop these from spreading. If you see one, report it to us, and warn any friends who might be affected.”
Facebook Security posted on their Facebook wall

Reminiscent of “beware of the brown acid” at Woodstock, we now have “beware of the fake Facebook ‘dislike’ button“, and it seems that lately there have been a lot of problems over at Yasker’s farm, er, sorry, Facebook.

Riva Richmond, on The New York Times’ “Gadgetwise” blog explains what’s going on with this latest shenanigans in her post simply titled: “Facebook ‘Dislike’ Button Is a Scam”

Richmond explains that the latest scam happening on Facebook has to do with a malicious Facebook app. She says that “a ‘dislike’ button is the latest in a string of cons circulating on the social-networking site. It purports to offer users a way to express their aversion to links, videos and other annoying content posted by friends on Facebook, as an alternative to giving a thumbs up with Facebook’s ‘Like’ button. To get it, they supposedly have to fill out a survey – at which point they unwittingly agree to recurring cellphone charges.”

What makes this scam so effective is that many Facebook users have been clamoring to get a “Dislike” button for years, and seeing a friend post “I just got the Dislike button, so now I can dislike all of your dumb posts lol!!” makes it all the more enticing.

So, before you update your status today, give Riva’s post a read, better to be informed, but “of course it’s your own trip. So be my guest, but please be advised that there is a warning on that one, ok?“