Police issue warning after tiny house ‘scam’ shared over 50k times

Police have issued a warning regarding social media competitions that offer luxury prizes following a scam this week.

This week a competition circulated on social media to win a ‘luxury caravan’, it ended up being shared on Facebook by over 50,000 people. 

Kingsbridge Police have now advised people to double-check the details of the page before entering these competitions, as they are quite often scams. 

It comes after the tiny house competition claimed that someone won the house but were under the required age of 17, so they posted it again to find another winner.

The police have warned users that if a competition looks too good to be true, it probably is. They have also said that by sharing fake competitions you share your personal information with hackers.

One Facebook user commented on the post from Kingsbridge Police, saying: “I guessed it was fake the first time I saw it because each time the post is shared it gives a different person’s name (under the age of 17 )that should have won the prize of the tiny house.”

Kingsbridge Police have warned users to check details such as how long a page has been open and whether or not there is a ‘proper’ website page attached.

The tiny house competition was posted just a day after the Facebook page was created. The page received 35,000 likes within that time period. 

The post from Kingsbridge Police said: “Social media is a fantastic way to keep in touch, socialise, and run your business. It’s also used by scammers and hackers.

“When you see competitions to win a fantastic prize which are normally too good to be true, then they probably are too good to be true.”

It continued: “Is a company really going to give away a very expensive caravan? Are airline companies really going to give away thousands of free flights? Will Range Rover actually give you an Evoque if you share a picture? Possibly, but very doubtful.

“Before you share the post, view the actual page. How long has it been open? Does the website link actually link to the proper web page? Is the competition shared on their website?

“When you share the fake competitions you are giving hackers access to your personal information which could be used for an unlawful purpose. Please check before you share.”

The tiny home competition gained over 20,000 likes, over 50,000 shares and almost 40,000 comments within about a day. 

This competition has now been taken down.