Breaches, the post-punk duo from Wellington, New Zealand, is composed of Hayden Ellis and Matt McGuiness.

Following their recent performance opening for Ville Valo (formerly of HIM) in Auckland, the band has been actively releasing new music. Their latest singles, “Twist the Knife” and “Left Behind,” have set the tone for their sound.

They now also unveiled a video for “Twist the Knife,” a track that holds significant meaning for the band. According to Hayden Ellis, “’Twist the Knife’ was the first song we wrote together, and it really defined our direction as a band. The song deals with the feeling of being lost in an unfamiliar place and is dedicated to the memory of a late friend who was always searching for an escape.”

With new music coming in the months ahead, Breaches will support Attrition (UK) in Wellington in November.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil.

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In recent months, owners of Facebook pages have been literally inundated with false messages, including bands of course. These attacks, often phishing attempts, use deceptive messages claiming that the victim’s Facebook page is “scheduled for deletion” due to alleged violations of community guidelines.

Here are some examples of messages that landed our inbox in the past few days, and were even sent via notification emails by Facebook itself.

Below is one of those messages, including an external – obviously fake – link.

But the more clever scams happen via a message holding a link to a fake Facebook note page named “Appeal a Page Policy Violation”. Everything looks legitimate, but it is not.

Once on the fake help page, users are redirected via an external link (just hover over the link to see the external link to verify) to a counterfeit Facebook help desk page. All buttons and links on this page do not work, except for the “Appeal” button.

By clicking this button, a form is opened where users are asked to enter personal information, such as login email addresses, phone numbers, names, and page names. The information submitted falls into the hands of scammers, who can then pose as Facebook officials and mislead users into providing their login details. This gives the scammers access to the victim’s Facebook account and their fan pages, or they can use the information for other scams, such as identity theft. Sometimes they will also ask for credit card details to ‘verify’ your identity.

Furthermore, there is a chance that they will try to install keylogger software on your computer. A keylogger is a program that can record a computer user’s keystrokes to even mouse movements. This way, they try to steal personal information, often passwords and usernames or credit card numbers.

What can you do to prevent these phishing attempts?

To prevent such phishing scams, we advise you to pay special attention to the web address; a legitimate Facebook official page should always start with facebook.com, if you see a different URL, then delete the message. Also, always contact Facebook directly for help instead of using links from others.

The following preventive measures are best taken:

• Be cautious with links: Do not click on suspicious links, especially in messages claiming to be from Facebook and threatening page deletion.
• Enable two-factor authentication: This adds an extra layer of security to your account.
• Be critical: Be careful with unsolicited messages or emails that require action, such as clicking on links or providing personal information.
• Update your privacy settings: Adjust your privacy settings to control who can see your messages and contact you.
• Inform yourself: Stay informed about the latest scam methods and inform your team or co-administrators of your page on how to recognize and prevent them.
• Limit the number of administrators of your Facebook page. Only those with sufficient knowledge should have access.

What can you do if your Facebook Page account was actually hacked?

The social media agency FOX DS has been contacted several times by page owners who are at their wits’ end when their page was hacked. They say clearly that “prevention is better than cure, as success is absolutely not guaranteed.” However, it is very important to act quickly to limit the damage.

First, you must seek help from Facebook to get your page back. This is not easy, as the help pages are quite hidden. Here are some steps (and links) you need to take to regain access:

1. Change your password: If you still have access to your account, change your password immediately. This helps prevent the scammers from further controlling your account.
2. Report the hacking to Facebook: Use the Facebook Hacked account report to report this incident and this Business support page to try to regain access to your page. Facebook offers a process to help you regain control of your account. Be aware, there is no guarantee that this will work.
3. Recover your account: Follow Facebook’s instructions for account recovery. This may include answering security questions or providing identification documents.
4. Check your account settings: After you have regained access, check your account settings to ensure that no suspicious changes have been made.
5. Contact your network: Inform your friends and followers about the breach and warn them not to interact with suspicious messages that may have been sent from your account.
6. Secure your account: Set up two-factor authentication and update your security settings to prevent future breaches.

As said before, there is no guarantee that this will work.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil.

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Meta is offering a subscription service that allows users in the European Union and Switzerland to stop seeing ads on Facebook and Instagram so the Social Media Agency FOX DS reports. The company claims this move complies with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

For a monthly fee ranging from 10 to 13 euros, depending on the purchasing channel, users can subscribe to this service. Meta states that customers will pay 10 euros through a web browser, while the price for the same subscription via iOS and Android is set at 13 euros due to Apple and Google’s commission fees. The subscription covers all user accounts linked within the shared Account Center. Starting from March 1, 2024, customers will pay an additional 6 euros per month via the web and an additional 8 euros via iOS and Android for each additional linked account in the Account Center. It is still unclear whether these additional fees will also apply to existing linked accounts. The subscription is only available to customers aged eighteen and over.

Meta in a Tangle with Data Protection Rules

Meta explains that the new subscription model is a response to the concerns of European regulators and the rules of the GDPR and Digital Markets Act (DMA). Social media platforms, including Facebook, are regularly criticized by privacy watchdogs for the unauthorized collection of user data. With this model, Meta offers users the choice to opt out of receiving personalized ads. For non-subscribers, nothing changes; they will continue to see personalized ads and have access to the current settings and preferences for ads.

It emphasizes that the subscription is a complement to the current ad-supported model. This service is only being launched in regions with strict data protection regulations and is merely an option for the user. On the company’s blog, Meta states it believes in an ad-supported internet and that the new subscription is purely a reaction to European legislation. After all, Facebook tracks your online behavior to then display targeted ads.

But Who Still Trusts the Company Behind Facebook and Instagram?

Now, the question is how many people are actually willing to pay to escape these ads and the constant stream of ads in their Instagram feed. Whether people will actually take this step remains to be seen. An online survey by Recode and market research firm Toluna in 2018 among American users showed that most Americans would not pay, despite their distrust of Facebook with their personal data. And that trust has not exactly increased over the years.

Trust in Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, has seen fluctuations, particularly due to data breaches and controversies. A notable example is the scandal involving Cambridge Analytica, which affected the data of up to 87 million individuals. Recent figures indicate that nearly half (48%) of people claim not to trust Meta’s platforms. Over the years, the company’s numerous controversies have likely contributed to this mistrust, despite its growth and expansion into new areas.

77 percent would stick with the regular ad version, while 23 percent would pay to have no ads. However, there is a big difference between saying and paying.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil.

side-line.com