Be Wary of the Alleged Return of 'Friendster'

Is Friendster really making a comeback? Over the weekend, rumors of the classic social media platform’s alleged return made rounds on the Pinoy side of the internet when a website with the domain friendster.click (different from the original friendster.com) went live. News outlet Philippine Star first shared the supposed revival of Friendster, with their Facebook post gaining over 25,000 reactions and 11,000 shares.

Since no official announcement has been made by the company about its comeback, it would be best to be careful if you’re planning to sign up to be a member of this “place for friends” as it collects data and records on-site activity. https://t.co/TKDfWCW8f5 | @philstarlife

— The Philippine Star (@PhilippineStar) November 27, 2022

Some people have already signed up

Once the alleged new “Friendster” link went live, many netizens immediately made their accounts, providing their information to the website in a rush of nostalgia.

Friendster is back!!!! Hahaha lezzgo!🥰🥰🥰🤣🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/HHGEqj9vwn

— SHRH杜淑美 (@sharuuhh) November 21, 2022

So Friendster is back! pic.twitter.com/lDZZDcX1WN

— Meyo (@Meeyolnear) November 21, 2022

Unfortunately, despite many netizens getting nostalgic and hopeful, you should be wary of this new website using the name “Friendster”, because there are so many red flags that might put you and your information in danger.

Domain spoofing

This new website is most likely a case of domain spoofing, which is a form of phishing where attackers present a domain similar to the original website in order to impersonate them. In this case, the alleged website uses the name “Friendster” to persuade people into signing up, but is using a completely different domain. The alleged website’s domain friendster.click is completely different from the original friendster.com.

Beware of Domain Spoofing.

Domain Spoofing is a form of phishing where an attacker impersonates a known business or person with fake website or email domain to fool people into the trusting them.

— Chazz (@ItsTheRealChazz) November 27, 2022

Questionable source

Doing a quick search, an unconvinced netizen discovered that the friendster.click gained attention among Pinoys after a Facebook page named “Stunner” shared the link. The page claimed that the social media platform is making a comeback, but offers no source for its information. They also noted that the Facebook page “Stunner” went through some name changes that made them even more skeptical.

Marami na nakapag-sign up bago pa to lumitaw sa PhilStar. Nagsimula lahat sa facebook page na to. pic.twitter.com/3dAE5aDg85

— Chazz (@ItsTheRealChazz) November 27, 2022

Fishy hosting provider

Another concerned netizen dug a little deeper and found the company hosting the friendster.click domain. It’s a company called “Nobis Technology Group, LLC”, and while it has a Linkedin profile, it has also been tagged with medium risk for possible fraud.

It’s WordPress-hosted

Aside from its .click domain, the fishy hosting provider uses WordPress to run the friendster.click website. To be clear, WordPress is a legitimate content management system used by many websites and blogs (including this one) — but is usually not used by social network platforms. Which is what makes friendster.click even more suspicious.

Mabagal rin WordPress depende sa optimization but wordpress is not built for large communities. It is built for e-commerce, blogs, and small communities only, unless they buy buddyboss app or really code their own web app tbh.

— Timoteo Lapa (@timoteovlapa1) November 27, 2022

No official announcement

Finally, Friendster itself has not made any official announcements about a possible comeback. The social media accounts of Friendster have not made any new posts in recent years. Both Facebook and Twitter accounts of Friendster have been inactive since 2015.

Protect your data

If you don’t want your data to be compromised, it’s better to avoid this website altogether, no matter how nostalgic you’re feeling. Since there is little to no information about the alleged new website, it’s best to exercise caution to protect yourself and your data. You never know if a website is being used for nefarious purposes.

5. It can be hacked by random people soon so only god knows how your data will be used. Balakayojan.

NO, IT IS NOT BACK. DO NOT REGISTER.

— Kevin Cuevas (@KevinCuevasPH) November 27, 2022

The real Friendster’s history

Launched in 2003, Friendster became one of the OG social networking sites, where users had free rein over playlists of their favorite songs, “testimonials” from friends, and customizations of blog-style profiles. At its peak, it had over 115 million users, with most based in Asia. Unfortunately, with more competitors like MySpace and Facebook gaining ground, Friendster was sold to Malaysian company MOL Global in 2009 and transformed into a social gaming site in 2011. Still, it was unable to retain enough active users and was then discontinued in 2015.

The original friendster.com domain is no longer active, and no official announcements have been made about a comeback. As this netizen points out, it’s 2022 and everyone is on mobile devices. So if Friendster really is making a comeback, it would probably make an app and not just another website.