Is the “Friend Quiz” Facebook App a Scam?

Nowadays, it seems like almost everyone between the ages of fourteen and forty have a Facebook page. I am one of those people. One of the activities I like to participate in is the “apps,” or “applications.” Apps are interactive. Some are quizzes.

Naturally, I was not surprised when I looked at my Facebook page and saw that a friend answered a question about me in an application. That application was called “Friend Quiz.” However, the question that that friend answered was not shown. Neither was her answer.

Naturally, I was curious, so I clicked on the link to the application. When you first try to access the Friend Quiz app, it prompts you to either go back to where you came from, or allow them to publish on your page without your consent.

“Nothing unusual about that,” I said to myself. I click the “Allow,” option.

Suddenly I see over fifty questions allegedly answered by my friends. Here are some samples:

“Do you think Lagen Witkowsky is hot?”

“Do you think Lagen Witkowsky has a nice butt?”

“Would you hook up with Lagen Witkowsky?”

“Do you think Lagen Witkowsky has a good chest?”

Do you think Lagen Witkowsky looks good in a bathing suit?”

“Do you think Lagen Witkowsky is a virgin?”

Wow. At first I was totally blown away. Who would answer any of these? Surely not my friends!

To find out who answered “yes” and “no” to these questions, I would have to answer these questions myself about other friends. For every fifty questions I answered, I would be able to see an answer about myself.

I took a step back and thought about the matter.

The more I considered its legitimacy, the more the Friend Quiz app seemed like a scam. First of all, on that Facebook account I only had twenty eight friends! The majority was religious, inactive, or did not know me very well. Many of those friends do not even participate in apps.

Hmm…

I only recalled a message from that application appearing on my wall once before. If I only had two notifications, then why were over fifty questions answered about me?

Why would the Friend Quiz app wish to deceive Facebook users?

First off, the more people surf their pages, the more money they can earn by selling ad space. People who wish to sell things will pay Friend Quiz to let them put up advertisements. Those advertisements can be seen on the sides of the Friend Quiz WebPages. The more a person answers questions, the more money Friend Quiz will get paid from advertisers.

Also, on Friend Quiz you can pay actual money via credit to see who answered questions about you. There is another option where a Facebook user can go directly to advertisers to build up credit that can be exchanged for answers.

By making you assume that real people actually answered controversial questions about you, Friend Quiz can make big bucks.

Do real people actually give answers?

Probably, but not necessarily.

Overall, you are best off staying away from iffy Facebook applications such as Friend Quiz. Why risk getting malware on your computer or being taken advantage of? Besides, by using this app, one would be giving it more exposure and essentially promoting its use. Personally, I would not want my nieces to be faced with cyberbulling, fake or otherwise. Preteens like them use Facebook. How would they feel upon recieving notification that eight, ten, or twelve people like their chests or think they have had intimate relations? Would young girls like them realize that this app is a fake?

Personally, I removed Friend Quiz.

A person can remove an app by clicking on “Account” at the top right of a Facebook page. Then click “Application Settings.” You will see a list of apps you have been involved with recently. Find the line that says “Friend Quiz.” Look to the right of that and you will find an “X.” Once you hit that the application will be off of your page.

P.S. Later on that day, that post on my wall became “unavailable.” Gee, I wonder why.

Sources: Personal Experience