How to protect yourself from scams on WhatsApp

WhatsApp has become the go to messaging app globally, enabling communication for its over 2.5 billion users. The Meta-owned application offers a seamless and intuitive platform for instant messaging, voice, and video calls.

End-to-end encryption ensures privacy, making it a trusted choice for both personal and professional interactions. However, malicious actors have also used it to perpetuate evil by asking for personal or financial information or spreading misinformation.

Here are what some suspicious messages look like:

· One with typos or grammatical mistakes.

· One that asks you to tap on a link, activate a new feature through a link, or download an app.

· One that asks you to share your personal information, like credit card or bank account numbers, birth date, or passwords.

· One that asks you to forward a message.

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· One that asks for money or claims you must pay to use WhatsApp.

· One where the scammer pretends they’re someone you know.

· One where the message is about a lottery, gambling, a job, an investment, or a loan.

· One where the person starts chatting with you to gain your trust before asking for personal information.

Here is how to protect yourself from these suspicious messages:

1. Pause and think

Look out for suspicious behaviour, such as an unknown number, expecting responses in a rush, posing threats, or asking to be trusted. They may be asking you to transfer money or share a password, pin, or personal information.

2. Stop the conversation

Hang up a call or stop replying to the user. If you can’t verify the contact’s identity, do not share any personal or financial information.

3. Block and report

Block the user to stop them from contacting you and report them to WhatsApp.

4. Update your privacy and security settings

Adjust your privacy settings to control who can see your personal information and contact you. You can also enable two-step verification to better secure your account.