Fact check. Does the home decor store offer a “special gift”?

You may have already come across a post on Facebook since the beginning of September alleging that the Ikea chain of stores is offering a gift to celebrate the birthday, or items with small defects, but it is false.

In the case of the publication under analysis, the page uses the brand’s logo to try to deceive Facebook users and create the illusion that it is the brand’s official page. A similar scheme recently happened with Decathlon. After users comment on the post, a comment is automatically generated: “Share our posts to your active groups or profiles. Confirm your winnings immediately by clicking the ‘Sign Up’ button above for free. Enter your email address and we will contact you shortly. limited enrollment good luck.”

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It’s all just a scheme to get personal data from Facebook users.

For The Observer, IKEA itself denies any veracity of the publications and calls on Facebook users not to click on the link: “This is a fraudulent campaign.”

IKEA Portugal reports that a statement is circulating on the Facebook social network that uses the brand image, with reference to an anniversary campaign and, consequently, an offer of IKEA items. We ask everyone affected by this post not to click on the link. This is a fraudulent campaign that aims to obtain the user’s personal data and without any connection with IKEA. All IKEA communications are made through its official channels. Tack!” Justifies the mark to the Observer.

In addition to the image associated with the page, the name also helps create the illusion that it is a legitimate promotion. The “IKEA fans” page has an apparently legitimate design and even uses official images of the Swedish chain’s store openings, but it’s all a strategy to fool as many users as possible.

conclusion

It is false that Ikea is offering a surprise item or gift to customers who comment on certain publications. It is a fake page that uses the image of the brand to try to retain Facebook users on online gaming platforms with an associated subscription, thus trying to keep the personal data of users who fall for the scam.

Thus, according to the Observer classification, this content is:

WRONG

In the Facebook classification system this content is:

FAKE: The main content claims are factually inaccurate. This option typically matches “false” or “mostly false” ratings on fact-checking websites.

NOTE: This content was curated by The Observer as part of a fact-checking partnership with Facebook.