SALT LAKE CITY — It's a sign of the times when people think they're doing something good, but still end up falling victim to scammers.
Hearts 4 Paws, a local Utah non-profit that finds homes for homeless pets, is telling people not to respond to recent posts on their Facebook page after it was hacked.
Since the hack, administrators have been locked out of the page due to the infiltrators turning off comments, while also posting photos of dogs that typically costs thousands and claiming to sell them for cheap.
None of the dogs posted are ones that Hearts 4 Paws have up for adoption.
The form the hackers have posted on the social media site looks very similar to the Hearts 4 Paws uses, but with a few extra questions about payment. They aski for a $300 deposit, something the non-profit would never do.
Another red flag is that the questionnaire form has several misspellings and grammar errors, which are tell-tale signs of a scam.
Hearts 4 Paws says they've reached out to Facebook in hopes of getting the page back. But until that happens, they ask that people not interact with the page. The form also limits the payment method to Zelle.
“Don’t fall for it, don’t click on that link,” said Hearts 4 Paws spokesperson Joe Simmons. “When in doubt, go to our website, hearts4paws.org, because that’s legitimate. Call our number. Don’t interact with the Facebook page at all until we get it resolved.”