NOTICE! DO NOT GIVE FACEBOOK, GOOGLE, OR YAHOO YOUR MOBILE PHONE NUMBERS. THEY WILL SPAM YOU WITH ADS AND YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY FOR THEM!!! I had built up my account on Facebook for my business and they just told me they now need my cell phone # with texting to log in now.

They said it was for my own security!! LOL!

Don't do it and do not believe a word they say. This is a massive, money making scheme and I have already been taken. They are selling your phone numbers to advertisers! You WILL have to pay for the messages that are sent to you.

Watch your cell phone bill!!!!

ELMO

That sounds like a scammer or some kind of phishing scheme to me. Facebook has never asked me for my phone number. Ever.

Yeah, it seems like a phishing scam to me, I've never received ads from Facebook/Google/Yahoo. You or someone else may have accidentally provided your phone number to one of those opt-ins a long time ago.

Oh Yeah????

Well read the comments at the bottom of this page:

[b]http://www.fluther.com/47063/why-does-facebook-ask-for-the-mobile-number/[/b]

They wait until you have built up your network then they spring it on you.

Oh yeah here are another couple of pages you may want to look at. They are going to spam your phone for messages and you will have to pay for them.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100812211431AA1rQs5

http://www.fluther.com/95292/why-does-facebook-ask-for-your-mobile-phone-number/

http://en.kioskea.net/forum/affich-451028-facebook-wont-stop-asking-for-my-number

Or here, straight from the horse's mouth:

http://www.facebook.com/help/?search=i+don%27t+have+a+mobile+phone

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Text from link above:
How can I verify my account if I don't have a mobile phone with text messaging?

If you are unable to verify your account through a mobile device, another way to verify your account is to affiliate with a college or university that provides you with an email address. You can add a college network from the Networks tab of your Account Settings page. Unfortunately, if you cannot verify through a mobile device or by adding a college network, you will continue to see the captcha and have to wait until a later time to sign up for a username.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

By the way, there is no captcha provided and I tried it on several computers.

Fakebook is evil for many reasons - did you know that lenders check out your F'book friends to see if you're a good credit risk? And so I'm waiting for Diaspora to go live.

I think Facebook users are vulnerable to a number of scammy/virusy problems. I fell for a "your friend xxxxx has sent you a link to this funny video" thing a few months ago that turned out to be a trojan that replicated itself and was in turn sent to my legitimate friends alleging to be from me. It cost me about $100 to totally rid this crap from my computer, and I had to change my FB login and password. I'm a lot more careful on FB now.

I'm fairly sure google and yahoo already have your cell phone numbers or can find them if they want them. Just do a search for your number. If you are an agent with any kind of internet exposure your number will be there.

Dang, I just found all my listings advertised in places I have never heard of, just my searchg my cell #.

Common sense goes a long way. Does FB, Google, Ying (or Binhoo, or whatever you want to call it) NEED your number? If not, then don't provide it.

And Artiste, can you expand on your statement: "did you know that lenders check out your F'book friends to see if you're a good credit risk?"

I just had a game of golf with a bank VP and asked him about it, he said he had never heard of that. I guess I just don't see how FB friends (or the lack thereof) would make someone a better credit risk.

Yesterday I read Google's "Privacy" policy. Lack of privacy is more like it. If you send an IM through Buzz, or through their site, they may have it on tape forever. If you use Google Maps on your cell phone, they know your location. Of course, if you were lost, this might be handy. However, in the ordinary way, I think this is just TOO MUCH!!

I heard collections agents are now calling peoples facebook friends to harrass them into paying.....crazy

Google is your friend.

LinkedIn is social networking for grownups.

I don't really know about the whole spamming thing or about creditors using your facebook account to spam you but I do know first hand from my family members and friends that more and more employers are checking facebook accounts during their background checks on new hires.

If employers are doing it I can't imagine it to be too far of a stretch to assume that lenders, or other organization do it as well...or at least are considering it.

That being said I agree with maui real estate....common sense really needs to come in to play here....whenever you upload/post anything somewhere that is not hosted by you, assume that it can and will be seen by people you don't want it to be seen by.

Regardless of any site’s privacy laws spammers, hackers, and advertisers are going to want access to that information and it is never a matter of “if” but “when”

People calling you through Facebook... that's a little extreme. If you are really concerned about your privacy, just toggle your privacy settings on FB. If it doesn't do the trick for you, delete all the apps you installed on FB

Ya, that is definitely a bit extreme. Have yet to experience FB asking for a phone number but will keep in mind not to give it to them!

@Atlanta Homes - I guess they are trying to use any and every avenue to get them...does sound crazy

Funny, I have yet to experience any sort of scamming/phishing/anything through Facebook, and they've had my cell number on record since I got their iPhone app ages ago.

Nobody who isn't already my friend can view any of my personal information, and nobody can view my mobile number on my personal FB page. Regardless, it's not like my contact info is some deeply hidden secret: my cell phone number is on my website, my FB business page, and who knows how many other websites. I mean, the point is for people to be able to reach me, right?

As far as lenders/creditors using Facebook to find deadbeats and assess applicants, that's nothing new. I've used Facebook, Myspace, and various other social media websites (past and present) to screen people potential employees and clients for years. Frankly, I find it astonishing that this is just now becoming news to people.

Facebook itself is quite safe, regardless of the hype in the media, who often don't understand the technical details of how the internet itself works. However, Facebook is the target of tons of phishing emails, so anything that asks you for personal data from Facebook should immediately be suspect.

Like anything else, it all boils down to common sense.

A new Firefox extension lets anyone sharing an open wireless network at your neighborhood café or workplace easily access your Facebook, Twitter and myriad other online accounts. It's a terrifying tool designed to highlight a longstanding problem.

"HOLY CRAP" sums up the general Twitter reaction, as compiled by TechCrunch.

http://gawker.com/5672877/

Thanks for pointing this out. It is probably some phishing scheme like perky said. I have heard of them before.

iahve never received calls from fb. what you said sounds strenge to me. looks like a phishing scam