Is a reliable person requesting money from you via WhatsApp? Be careful—there might be a scam involved that has previously defrauded victims out of thousands of dollars.
Be careful before sending anything over if a friend or family member asks for a big amount of money via WhatsApp. There is a fraud going around that uses WhatsApp, and it has already made the scammers hundreds of thousands of dollars from the money that innocent individuals have sent them.
Let’s examine this WhatsApp fraud, its mechanism, and preventative measures.
What Is Happening to WhatsApp Users?
According to The Straits Times, there have been allegations of a certain type of WhatsApp scam experiencing a spike in activity in November 2023. In order to pull off this scam, victims are led to believe they are receiving messages from loved ones, and after that, they are asked for money to handle a fictitious emergency.
There were 237 reports of scam victims as of the beginning of November 2023 alone, and the con artists managed to escape with a grand total of $606,000. The worst part is that it could take weeks or months for the victim to even realize they have been duped.
How the WhatsApp Scam Works
This specific fraud combines social engineering with a phony WhatsApp Web Google result, two well-known schemes into one.
1. The Fake WhatsApp Web Google Result
The con artist sets up a phony WhatsApp website advertisement on Google to start the swindle. Sadly, con artists have the ability to insert phony website clones into Google Search advertising, so that when a victim searches for WhatsApp Web, the scammer’s phony website takes first place.
Clicking on this fraudulent WhatsApp Web result will take users to a lookalike that requests they scan a QR code, much like the official WhatsApp website does. The con artist gains access to the victim’s WhatsApp account when they scan the fictitious QR code.
2. The Social Engineering Phase to Extract Money
After breaking into the victim’s WhatsApp account, the fraudster might start sending messages to the victim’s loved ones. Here, the con artist will fabricate a tale to persuade the contact to send a substantial amount of money. This might be any situation the con artist can conceive of, including a medical condition, unpaid rent, becoming the target of a robbery, etc.
The fraudster requests that money be sent to the contact’s bank account if they consent. The contact thinks they are supporting a friend or relative who is experiencing financial hardship, but in actuality, they are filling the coffers of a con artist.
Both the victim of the hack and the sender of the money will be unaware that a fraud has even taken place if the con artist leaves the account before too long. It might only be discovered when the person who made the payment brings it up in conversation at a later time.
How to Avoid This WhatsApp Scam
Fortunately, being aware of this scam’s existence is your best line of defense against it. One individual in the situation can stop the con artist from taking any money if they know exactly how the fraud operates.
1. How to Avoid Fake WhatsApp Web Clones
Steer clear of Google entirely is the easiest method to avoid WhatsApp Web clones. You may log in to the webpage by visiting web.whatsapp.com rather than searching Google for it. Although it’s a simple URL to remember, save the page for later if you’re concerned you might forget it.
Make sure you are clicking on a search result and not an advertisement if you would rather use a search engine to locate WhatsApp Web. To accomplish this, look at the URL beneath the search result; if it points to web.whatsapp.com, it is a valid URL.
2. How to Avoid Paying a WhatsApp Scammer
Nothing is lost even if an account is compromised. People can refuse to pay up and leave the fraudster without any money if they know that everyone they contact is a scammer.
First, notice if someone you’re close to starts getting in touch with you in an unusual manner. Maybe they misspell terms they’d never misspell, or they just sound “off” overall. Maybe they type in a different style. This is a strong indication that the person you are speaking with is not who they claim to be. Avoid clicking on any links they provide you and never transfer them money.
Try reaching out to them by a way other than WhatsApp if you have any concerns that you are speaking with the real deal and that they might need your assistance. In the event that they acknowledge being hacked, instruct them to follow the procedures for handling a hijacked WhatsApp account.
Stay Safe From WhatsApp Scams
Even though this scam seems frightening, it only works if the victims are unaware of it beforehand. Now that you understand the fundamentals, you may use these suggestions in practical situations and keep a con artist from getting paid.