Is Gracie Mae Thompson a Real Missing Girl or an Internet Phishing Scam?

If you frequent Facebook, you've probably seen your fair share of missing persons posts. While they usually have some sort of police report or amber alert to go with them, others are a bit more questionable — and if you've heard of Gracie Mae Thompson, you might know what we mean.

Posts about a missing girl named Gracie Mae Thompson started popping up on Facebook in early August 2024, with her disappearance allegedly occurring on July 22. The posts describe her as a 15-year-old girl from Texas with dyed black hair wearing black shorts and a black shirt.

But is any of it real? Recently, folks think they've cracked the case, calling the disappearance of "Gracie Mae Thompson" a phishing scam. Here's what we know.

Despite the heart-wrenching content of the post, many think they've sussed it out as a phishing scam. If you're not familiar with the concept of a phishing scam, it's an internet-based scam in which the scammers distribute links that, when clicked, can steal your sensitive information like passwords, credit card numbers, and more.

This is exactly how some people think the "Gracie Mae Thompson" posts are functioning. Many of them have links to click for "more information" — however, when the links are clicked, they allegedly install malware onto your computer in order to access your data.

Others think it may be a simpler scam in the form of "like farming."

"Briefly, social networks assign 'weight' to people, pages, and posts based on the number of interactions. That can be like, shares, comments, etc. ... Suppose something successfully 'goes viral', and the poster is assigned more 'popularity points' with Facebook. That means their later activity will be more likely to be seen by others and less likely to be removed when complained about by other users," one user on Reddit theorized.

There have been no official missing persons reports for anyone named Gracie Mae Thompson matching the teen's description, and the posts seem to contain conflicting information as they travel across the web, like listing her as being from two different states. Some even claim that Gracie has been found.

On Aug. 12, 2024, the Sedan Police Department issued a warning on Facebook about posts detailing a missing child, pet, or elderly person. These posts are designed to tug at your heartstrings and prompt you to act, whether by sharing the post or clicking a link. While some of these posts are legitimate, others are not.

Therefore, before you take any sort of action, the department shared a few tips from the BBB to help you distinguish between a real post and a sham. For instance, check with news outlets to see if the person is being reported on and conduct a reverse image search on Google. This will allow you to see if the post is being used on other sites and whether the content matches or has been altered.

And if you see a post about Gracie or one just like it, think twice before sharing it with your friends.