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10 WhatsApp Scams to Watch Out For
Published: Nov 23, 2022 by Shubhomita Bose In Small Business Operations 2
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With more than 2 billion users at present, WhatsApp is a massively popular platform in many parts of the world. But it's not just users who are leveraging this app to stay connected. A large number of scammers are frequenting it to cheat people. As a result, WhatsApp scams and instances of identity theft and voicemail hacking are on the rise.
What is WhatsApp Fraud?
Like most cyber frauds, WhatsApp scams involve a largely sophisticated process where users unwittingly end up sharing confidential information. Scammers are mostly interested in harvesting personal information so they can impersonate users and access their money. Given that a billion users are on WhatsApp today, the platform becomes all the more attractive to these scam artists.
In other cases, they use spyware to gain complete control over the phone. This is done using a fake WhatsApp verification code that's often difficult to detect and trace back.
In the last year, WhatsApp scams have gone up by 2,000%. This alarming trend is prompting experts to demand better from WhatsApp and to take adequate steps to protect data.
READ MORE: WhatsApp Has New Privact Features
Different Types of Scams That are Being Run on the App
A major challenge with WhatsApp scams is there's not just one or two types of fraud that need to be addressed to fix the problem. In the last few years, various types of WhatsApp scams have become the norm. From hackers poaching for bank account details to criminals impersonating friends and family asking users to transfer money, it's become rather sophisticated.
Let's take a look at some of the most common WhatsApp scams.
1. Whatsapp Business Account Scams
In several cases, scammers have been setting up fake business accounts to defraud users. They closely resemble verified business accounts, making it even harder for users to detect. As a business owner, you should keep a close eye on scammers impersonating your business and report such accounts. It's worth noting that a business account with a grey question mark denotes it hasn't been verified by WhatsApp.
2. Whatsapp Wrong Number Scams
Most WhatsApp scammers are highly advanced in using technology to defraud people. Take the wrong number scams for example. Using automated chatbots, scammers get in touch with potential victims, engaging them in conversations only to rip them off. The process is fairly straightforward. The scammer will contact a potential victim who will presume it's a random wrong number. Once a conversation is initiated, the scammer will create a highly sophisticated strategy to gain access to personal details.
3. Verification Trick
The verification scam is another common way of hacking into a WhatsApp account. The victim receives two messages almost at the same time. One message is typically an apology from a friend or family member who says they accidentally sent a verification code to the victim's account. They then ask for the code. Once the code is shared, the hacker takes complete control of the victim's WhatsApp account.
4. Impersonation/The Mom & Dad Scam
The easiest way to scam people is by impersonating a friend or family. The Mom and Dad scam has been around for some years now. It has found its way into WhatsApp where a scammer pretending to be a family member defrauds the victim. In the case of this scam, the victim receives a message from a close family member who claims to have lost their phone. They then ask the victim to share bank account details.
5. WhatsApp Hijacking
Cyber hijackers are adept at gaining complete access to their victim's phones. Some of them do this so well, it takes at least a couple of hours if not days for the victim to realize what has happened. They get the victims to install spyware that reveals confidential information such as usernames, passwords and more.
6. Voicemail Hacking
Another common scam is voicemail hacking, which lets the scammers break into a victim's voicemail and find access to their WhatsApp. Scammers download WhatsApp and select the option to claim they never received a verification code via phone. Since they are aware WhatsApp calls users when they select this option, they hack the voicemail to change the pin and gain access to the victim's account.
7. Compromised App
In recent years, several reports have emerged to suggest the existence of malware hidden in WhatsApp. Once the compromised apps are downloaded, users receive several spam messages and links to download suspicious pages.
8. Malicious Links
A simple scam method that has been around for many years now, scammers send external links to the victims to access their accounts. Most scammers dupe users by promising them quick rewards by clicking the links. Once they do so, users are redirected to an external site where they are asked to share personal information in order to receive a prize. Scammers usually use this information to defraud the victim or sell it off to other
9. Whatsapp crypto scam
Ripping victims off by telling them about a lucrative scheme is a classic way of scamming them. In most cases, scammers first befriend the victim. Once they establish a good rapport, they tell them about a crypto scheme. If they are successful in trapping the victim, they will ask them to transfer money to a cryptocurrency trading site. And that's the last time, the victim will be able to see their money.
10. Complete the Survey
Completing an online survey promising rewards is tempting for many users. Realizing this, many scammers are sending spyware links in the guise of surveys to unsuspecting victims. These straightforward-looking surveys get victims to share confidential information that is then used to impersonate them.
How WhatsApp Users Can Protect Themselves from these Scams
While it's true WhatsApp scams are increasing steadily, not all is lost for WhatsApp users. Understanding the psyche of a WhatsApp scammer is a great way to protect your account and data. What they are really after is your information, so make sure your account details are not easily accessible. Any time you receive a suspicious or unknown message, make sure you block the contact. Be wary of clicking on any links even if it looks like you received them from someone you know. Most importantly, don't act in haste even if the unknown contact sounds familiar.
Tips for Spotting a Whatsapp Scam Message
Here are some simple tips to spot a WhatsApp scam message.
Check the tone of the message: One simple way to ascertain a message's legitimacy is to check the communication method. In most cases, scammers try to create a sense of urgency to prompt the user to act in haste.
Messages from an unknown number: Unless the scammer has hijacked an account, they will send messages from unknown numbers.
Demands for urgent payment: Scammers will typically ask you to send money promptly via sites such as PayPal that do not require any bank details.
Grammatical mistakes: Most scammers compose messages with spelling mistakes.
No option to call back: Another common trait is the unknown number that contacts you is generally inaccessible. In other words, you will not be able to call back.
How to Avoid and Stop Whatsapp Scams Altogether
With other users falling prey to these scams all the time, it's a real concern to become a target of these hackers. That being said, preventing WhatsApp scams is not impossible. Here are some ways to avoid WhatsApp scams altogether.
Set up two-factor authentication: This gives your account an additional layer of security and makes it harder for scammers to target your account.
Add a pin to your voicemail: This will prevent the scammer from accessing WhatsApp verification codes from your voicemail.
Confirm with family and friends: If you receive a message or call from your family or friends asking for money, make sure you call them and confirm before transferring anything.
Avoid clicking on links: No matter how tempting the language is, do not click on external links.
Analyze the language of messages: When you receive a message from a contact or an unknown number, spend some time evaluating the language. Will your friend really write like that? Do you find any spelling errors?
Reporting Whatsapp Scam Messages
If you are suspecting a suspicious message, you can report it to WhatsApp directly.
See Also: How to Avoid Gift Card Scams
On your Android phone, open WhatsApp, click on More Options, go to Settings – Help – Contact us and report the message.
On iOS, open WhatsApp and click on Settings – Help – Contact us.
Closing Down your Whatsapp Account if You've Been Scammed
If you fall victim to a scam, you may consider closing your account to avoid similar scams in the future. But first, you may want to understand what made you vulnerable to scammers.
Why are you getting random Whatsapp messages?
Everyone receives random messages on social media. So, it's nothing out of the blue. In most cases, you might be receiving spam that is different than scam messages.
Why do catfish use WhatsApp?
For catfishing, WhatsApp has become a popular platform because it's used by billions of people all over the world. Moreover, its ease of use means scammers have a greater chance of trapping an unsuspecting victim.
Can you control who sends you WhatsApp Messages?
You can limit the number of people contacting you on WhatsApp. To do so, you need to go to your WhatsApp settings, Privacy option and choose "My contacts" or Nobody. This will prevent unknown contacts from reaching out to you.
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Shubhomita Bose
Shubhomita Bose is a Staff Writer for Small Business Trends. She covers key studies and surveys about the small business market, along with general small business news. She draws on 8 years of experience in copywriting, marketing and communications, having worked extensively on creating content for small and medium sized enterprises.
Vishwajeet Kumar
WhatsApp scam is growing at a rapid speed. We need to cautious about them. Avoid joining unwnated WhatsApp groups and do not click any strange or unknown links. You have shared some great tips here.
It's incredible how many scammers pop up everyday on our phones – text or email. I didn't know about the survey one, thanks! In our business we get a lot of email scams come in every single day.
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Lawyer: Classified documents found at former VP…
Lawyer: Classified documents found at former VP Mike Pence's house
The documents "were inadvertently boxed and transported," according to the former vice president's attorney
Stephen M. Dowell/Lake Buena Vista Sentinel via AP
FILE – Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks at the Florida chapter of the Federalist Society's annual meeting at Disney's Yacht Club resort in Walt Disney World, Feb. 4, 2022, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. After years of being a subservient sidekick, Pence is beginning to distance himself from former President Donald Trump as he takes increasingly overt steps toward a White House bid of his own. Stephen M. Dowell/Lake Buena Vista Sentinel via AP, File)
PUBLISHED: January 24, 2023 at 10:05 a.m. | UPDATED: January 24, 2023 at 10:08 a.m.
By Jill Colvin | Associated Press
NEW YORK — Documents with classified markings were discovered in former Vice President Mike Pence's Indiana home last week, his lawyer told the National Archives in a letter — the latest in a string of discoveries of confidential information in private residences.
The records "appear to be a small number of documents bearing classified markings that were inadvertently boxed and transported to the personal home of the former vice president at the end of the last administration," Pence's lawyer, Greg Jacob, wrote in the letter shared with The Associated Press.
He said that Pence "engaged outside counsel, with experience in handling classified documents, to review records stored in his personal home after it became public that documents with classified markings were found in President Joe Biden's Wilmington residence."
RELATED: FBI searched Biden home, found items marked classified
The Justice Department already is using special counsels to investigate the presence of documents with classification markings taken from the Florida estate of former President Donald Trump and from Biden's home and former Washington office. The department says roughly 300 documents marked classified, including at the top-secret level, were taken from Mar-a-Lago, and officials are trying to determine whether Trump or anyone else should be charged with illegal possession of those records or with trying to obstruct the months-long criminal investigation.
Pence's lawyer said in his letter that the former vice president "was unaware of the existence of sensitive or classified documents at his personal residence" and "understands the high importance of protecting sensitive and classified information and stands ready and willing to cooperate fully with the National Archives and any appropriate inquiry."
Jacob said that Pence immediately secured the documents that were discovered in a locked safe. And according to a follow-up letter from the lawyer dated Jan. 22, FBI agents visited Pence's residence to collect the documents.
A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment Tuesday, and a lawyer for Pence did not immediately respond to an email seeking elaboration.
Pence told the Associated Press in August that he did not take any classified information with him when he left office.
Asked directly if he had retained any such information, he said, "No, not to my knowledge."
In a January interview with Fox Business, Pence described a "very formal process" used by his office to handle classified information as well as the steps taken by his lawyers to ensure none was taken with him.
Former presidents, VPs asked to check again for classified documents
Palestinians: Israeli troops kill 10 in West Bank raid
How classified documents ended up at 1984 a show-and-tell
Adam Schiff launches his Senate bid, after talking to Dianne Feinstein
"Before we left the White House, the attorneys on my staff went through all the documents at both the White House and our offices there and at the vice president's residence to ensure that any documents that needed to be turned over to the National Archives, including classified documents, were turned over. So we went through a very careful process in that regard," Pence said.
World News |

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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The Reverend Samson Occom (1723-1792)
Jonathan Spilsbury, English, 1737 - 1812
after Mason Chamberlin, English, 1727 - 1787
Mezzotint on laid paper
Impression: 12 3/4 × 9 7/8 in. (32.4 × 25.1 cm)
Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth: Gift of Mrs. Robert White Birch, Class of 1927W
Henry Parker, London
Place Made: England, United Kingdom, Europe
Inscribed, lower left: M. Chamberlin pinx.t; lower right: J Spilsbury fecit; center: The Reverend Mr. SAMSON OCCOM, / The first Indian Minister that ever was in Europe, & who accompanied the Revd. Nathanl. Whitaker D.D. in an application to / Great Britain for Charities to support ye. Revd. Dr. Wheelock's Indian Academy, & Missionaires amoung ye. Native Savages of N. American. / Publish'd according to Act of Parliamnet, Sept: 20, 1768. by Henry Parker, at No. 82. in Cornhill, LONDON.; on reverse, of mat: Acquired October 1961 by gift of Mrs. Robert W. Birch.
Education in the Young Republic, Fraunces Tavern Museum, New York, New York, September 8, 1988-January 6, 1989.
Portraits at Dartmouth, Jaffe-Friede Gallery, Hopkins Center Art Galleries, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, March 10-April 16, 1978.
The Artful Disposition of Shades: The Great Age of English Mezzotints, Owen Robertson Cheatham and Friends Galleries, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, January 19 through March 14, 2010.
Gretchen Townsend, Education in the Young Republic, New York: Fraunces Tavern Museum, 1988, p. 26.
Arthur R. Blumenthal, Portraits at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire: Trustees of Dartmouth Collection, 1978, p. 35, no. 26, ill.
Hugh Amory and David D. Hall, eds., A History of the Book in America, Vol. 1, The Colonial Book in the Atlantic World, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2000, 638 pp., illus. p. 24.
Dick Hoefnagel with the collaboration of Virginia L. Close, Eleazar Wheelock and the Adventurous Founding of Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire: Hanover Historical Society, The Durand Press, 2002, 143 pp., ill. p. 59.
Bernd C. Peyer, editor, American Indian Nonfiction: An Anthology of Writings, 1760s-1930s, Norman, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press, 2007, cover illustration (detail), in entirety on back cover.
T.Barton Thurber, The Artful Disposition of Shades: The Great Age of English Mezzotints, Hanover: Trustees of Dartmouth College, Capital Offset Company Inc., 2010, ill, p. 3, fig. 1, checklist p. 23.
Angela Rosenthal and David Bindman, No Laughing Matter: Visual Humor in Ideas of Race, Nationality, and Ethnicity, Hanover, New Hampshire: Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, 2003 p.207, ill.3.5
Colin G. Calloway, First Peoples: A Documentary Survey of American Indian History, Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2012, p. 207, Figure 3.5.
Mrs. Robert White Birch (wife of Robert Birch White, 1906-1956, Class of 1927), San Clemente, California; given to present collection, 1961.


Former Pro Bowl cornerback Darrelle Revis announced his retirement from the NFL on Wednesday.
"Today I am closing a chapter in my life that I once dreamed of as a kid and I am officially retiring from the National Football League," Revis said in a statement.
The Kansas City Chiefs released Revis on Feb. 8, saving $4.5 million on their salary cap.
Revis played for four teams in 11 seasons -- the New York Jets, New England Patriots, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chiefs -- but spent the majority of his career with the Jets. Now 33, he sat out most of last season until signing a two-year contract with the Chiefs on Nov. 23. He played in five games (two starts) plus a playoff loss to the Tennessee Titans.
Fellow cornerbacks Jalen Ramsey, Darius Slay and Logan Ryan saluted Revis on his announcement. Revis earned a Super Bowl ring with Ryan on the 2014 Patriots.
The Jets released a series of statements later Wednesday. "I spent two seasons with Darrelle and he stands out as one of the smartest players I have ever coached," coach Todd Bowles said in one. "Darrelle was also a player with a relentless dedication to preparation who set a high standard for how he practiced every day. He walks away from this game leaving a stamp that everyone who knows the game will remember."
"Darrelle's preparation, competitiveness, intelligence and attention to detail are a reflection of his dedication to the game and his teammates," chairman and CEO Christopher Johnson said in another. "Jets fans everywhere slept well at night confident that receivers would be stranded on Revis Island."
Revis, a seven-time Pro Bowl selection and four-time first-team All-Pro, in recent years failed to distinguish himself as the dominant player he frequently was early in his career -- a fact Revis acknowledged shortly after the season concluded.
For many of the previous 10 seasons with the Jets, Patriots and Buccaneers, Revis was one of the NFL's top cornerbacks. He earned the nickname "Revis Island'' for his ability to lock up receivers in one-on-one coverage. He is the only defensive back to take home more than $100 million in cash value since his rookie season in 2007.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, with five, is the only cornerback with more first-team All-Pro selections.
Is Darrelle Revis a Hall of Famer? Yes. First ballot? Let's debate.
Former Jets coach Rex Ryan, now an ESPN analyst, told The Associated Press that "there wasn't anybody close" to Revis during the prime of his career.
"Maybe Deion in his prime, but that would be the only guy. Darrelle could handle anybody. I don't care if it's Hall of Fame guys, he locked them down and covered them and it wasn't even close," Ryan told the AP.
Revis had 29 career interceptions, returning three for touchdowns, including a 100-yarder against Miami. In 2009, Revis was beaten out by Charles Woodson for Defensive Player of the Year honors.
ESPN's Adam Teicher and The Associated Press contributed to this report.


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