Wanted: people with a phone like yours. Just click here.

I was just scrolling through Facebook, keeping up with the kids and other parents, when an advert grabbed me. It said 'Wanted: Nokia Lumia 1520 users!' Gosh, I thought. I've got one of those. It must be just for me. Reading further, it said:

Do you own a Nokia Lumia 1520? Then we are looking for you! We are looking for Nokia users who want to answer online questionnaires. No need to be an expert, anyone can do it. For each completed questionnaire you will receive a nice reward. Are you interested? Click here and join now

Now what does having a Nokia Lumia 1520 have to do with this? And why would having one make me want to answer online questionnaires. Maybe the 'nice reward'? Or just because I'm interested (as they suggest I am, just before the command to 'click here'). Frankly I was a bit annoyed by this crass manipulation. I also wondered how many people fell into this hole and who knows where the link would lead. In fact I took another route to explore the link (to avoid the tracker) and found it went to a Dutch language site that promised me lots of Facebook 'likes'. No doubt in exchange for a slice of my wallet.

It was a sharp reminder that Facebook is not free. I give them details of my life and they sell these to advertisers who get more and more under my skin. I'm perhaps lucky as I can see through most manipulations. But many can't and that lead them into danger.

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