Melissa Bean's office warning of fraudulent Facebook pages

If you've "friended" U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean on Facebook, be warned: The account may not actually belong to the Barrington Democrat.

Bean's office is warning constituents, supporters and even her colleagues in Washington, D.C., that unknown criminals have created fake Facebook accounts using her name, her face and the names of her family members.

Once the digital connection is made, the scammers send e-mails to unsuspecting victims, supposedly from Bean and asking for money for seemingly legitimate causes.

"They were sending e-mails from me, talking about me and my kids," Bean said Friday. "It's a real violation."

Constituents notified Bean's office about the suspicious e-mails a few weeks ago. Bean staffers have notified law enforcement officials about the scam, and Facebook has shut down the pages.

The U.S. Secret Service and the Capitol Police are investigating, Bean said.

However, the criminals may still try to keep the scam going with new pages or through e-mail, Bean warned.

"We're checking regularly to make sure no more pop up," she said.

The scam is particularly troublesome this time of year, Bean said, because many people are in charitable moods. She's not aware of anyone who actually was defrauded by the scammers, who may live outside the United States.

Bean does have an official Facebook page, and it's maintained by her campaign team. The URL is facebook.com/pages/Melissa-Bean/25257816705.

Anyone receiving e-mails from Bean via Facebook should confirm the messages comes from that profile.