That 50% off Lowe's coupon going viral on Facebook is actually fake

A Facebook post that claims Lowe's is giving away 50% off coupons is fake and a potential phishing scam.

Similar posts have surfaced on Facebook in the past, but all of the offers have two things in common -- there is no coupon and the companies mentioned in the posts are not participating in the "promotion."

If you click on the link in the post, it takes you to a website where you are instructed to share the post and "like" a Facebook page. Similar scams have been linked to companies including Amazon, Best Buy, Home Depot, and Costco.

Dozens of people have posted on the Lowe's Facebook page asking about the promotion. Lowe's has responded to the posts by saying:

"Unfortunately this promotion on Facebook is a phishing scam and is not connected with Lowe's in any way.
Please be careful when responding to any pop up ad either online or via social media; as, more often than not, the offer of gift cards or other prizes to customer's in the guise of a specific company are set up to get your personal information for nefarious purposes."


The Better Business Bureau offers these tips for helping you identify a scam on Facebook: