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BILLIONS of WhatsApp users have been warned over a “very scary” message that could affect anyone this Christmas.
Mum Kasi Reid, from Coventry, made the warning to other parents after she almost fell victim to a WhatsApp scam.
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She said she was called by a man on the app who claimed to be part of the parents’ group at her son’s school.
Then, he sent her a code about joining a WhatsApp group to arrange a Christmas party.
However, before she attempted to join is, Kasi luckily spotted the code would have in-fact transferred data between their devices.
She described the idea he could have had access to the entirety of her details on WhatsApp as “very scary”.
Read More on Scams and Fraud
The mum said she uses the messaging app for “everything”, and that it contains much information about her son as well as her own mum.
After becoming suspicious while still on the phone with the man, she hung up.
This was after she spotted it could have led to all her personal information being shared with him.
Mum Kasi believes it could have been a purposeful effort to scam her.
She added how it was strange he called during the school rush, something another parent shouldn’t have the free time to do at that moment.
Kasi said: “[He was] dependent on me being distracted and me being rushed so I would give [him] the code.”
The National Cyber Security Centre provides guidance on its website for scams.
It advises those who receive a suspicious message or call to report it on their site.
Earlier this year, WhatsApp rolled out a new triple alert feature to try and help protect against scams.
Now, if you’re added to a group by someone you don’t know, you will now see a context card pop up.
The alert will give you more more information about the group, such as who added you, when the group was created, and who created it.
These three details can help WhatsApp users piece together whether its a group they want to be part of – before they fall for a potential scam.
How to protect yourself from scams
BY keeping these tips in mind, you can avoid getting caught up in a scam:
- Firstly, remember that if something seems too good to be true, it normally is.
- Check brands are “verified” on Facebook and Twitter pages – this means the company will have a blue tick on its profile.
- Look for grammatical and spelling errors; fraudsters are notoriously bad at writing proper English. If you receive a message from a “friend” informing you of a freebie, consider whether it’s written in your friend’s normal style.
- If you’re invited to click on a URL, hover over the link to see the address it will take you to – does it look genuine?
- To be on the really safe side, don’t click on unsolicited links in messages, even if they appear to come from a trusted contact.
- Be careful when opening email attachments too. Fraudsters are increasingly attaching files, usually PDFs or spreadsheets, which contain dangerous malware.
- If you receive a suspicious message then report it to the company, block the sender and delete it.
- If you think you’ve fallen for a scam, report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or use its online fraud reporting tool.
From there, WhatsApp users can decide to stay or leave the group.
They can also access some of WhatsApp’s safety tools.
Scammers often cast their phishing net far and wide, adding dozens of numbers to a group chat before trying to lure them into a scam.
The ruses themselves are varied, and can be anything from a get-rich-quick scheme to advertising job roles.
A tell tale sign that a group chat is not for you is if you don’t recognise the contact that added you, or the one that formed the chat.
It can also be suspicious if the group was only just created.
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