WhatsApp It has become one of the most used communication channels, especially on mobile devices, and due to these characteristics, criminals often use it to commit fraud.
In the past, some impersonation attempts have been reported taking advantage of security weaknesses, but sometimes criminals take advantage of users’ ignorance.
According to the security firm ESETa new modus operandi is gaining traction, and they just need to copy your photo and a bit of information to get it going.
To commit this fraud, the criminal uses the profile picture of WhatsAppthe name and even a nickname of a close person who, from an unknown number, tries to gain your trust.
After talking for a while, the fraudster tries to sell supposed dollars with the promise of delivering them shortly after a deposit is made to your account.
By posing as a trusted person, many fall and never see their money back or have contact with the criminal.
How to avoid this new WhatsApp fraud
The most effective way to avoid falling for this scam is to directly contact the number of the person they are pretending to be, this way you can be sure if they are who they say they are or not.
You will also give him the opportunity to warn his circle about what happened and you can prevent others from falling.
It is also recommended to be careful with emails that ask you to fill out forms with your data, since through this method they gain access to your email accounts, and therefore to backup copies of contacts.
This technique is known as phishing, and it’s been so refined that it’s hard to tell when it’s real mail and when it’s not. It is advisable to ignore the emails and consult directly on the official pages.
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