US EditionRise of WhatsApp scam - police warning to users
- West Midlands Police warned on 2025-05-11 that WhatsApp takeover scams are affecting people across their region by targeting users' accounts.
- The scam occurs when fraudsters supply a victim's phone number to WhatsApp, causing an automatic six-digit verification code to be sent to the victim's phone.
- Criminals then contact victims, often posing as known contacts, and use fabricated reasons like online meeting invites to trick them into sharing the code.
- Providing the verification code gives scammers complete control over the user’s profile, preventing the rightful owner from accessing it and allowing the scammer to impersonate them in order to solicit money or sensitive information from their contacts.
- Police advise never sharing verification codes, enabling two-step verification, reporting suspicious messages, and contacting banks or Action Fraud at 0300 123 2040 if targeted.
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Police alert about the latest scam at Whatsapp: you can run out of money and data
The National Police has alerted citizens to a scam that is affecting WhatsApp users. Through a "simple but very effective" scam, criminals manage to take control of the victim's account, access all their contacts and use their identity to ask for money. Specifically, the police force has detailed in a statement that the scam starts when scammers manage to access the WhatsApp account of a family member or friend of yours, with whom they have acce…
·Madrid, Spain
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Total News Sources21
Leaning Left0Leaning Right1Center8Last UpdatedBias Distribution89% Center
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