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The fake Facebook trick you need to be wary of

Facebook users have been warned not to fall for an internet hoax that claims to be able to show you who is "secretly" viewing your profile.

Viral posts on the social network claim that a section within Facebook's "Settings" reveals a list of strangers who are watching your page without your knowledge.

But Facebook users are being warned not to fall for the trick, as there isn't actually anyone "secretly following you".

The hoax tells you to find the 'blocking' tab. Source: Facebook
The hoax tells you to find the 'blocking' tab. Source: Facebook

While there are multiple variations of the post, one example says that if you go into your account settings, click on the "Blocking" tab and look for "Block users" you can type in a search bar to find people "following" you.

"Search 'following me' without the quotes - you might be startled by who is following you," one example reads.

It does look real because a list of names will pop up once you search "following me" but rest assured, those people are not following you.

When you type in
When you type in

Facebook conducts a search of public profiles and brings up the ones that best match your search.

In this particular case, people who come up in the search have the words "following" and "me" in their profile.

This is the latest in a series of hoax warnings about Facebook security.

A list of people comes up. Source: Facebook
A list of people comes up. Source: Facebook

Earlier this year a rumour spread that Facebook security officials were being paid to watch individual accounts.

It turned out to be fake.

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