Last month, I wrote about a new scam modus operandi involving WhatsApp. Scammers have created fake WhatsApp web pages to trick unwitting WhatsApp users into signing into WhatsApp web. You can read the article here.
I nearly fell for the scam if not for realising the URL differs from the usual WhatsApp web address and that I found another unidentified user in the list of my WhatsApp.
I consider this a new Modus Operandi, as there were no reports on this MO. The syndicate behind the scam can only operationalise the scam after Meta, WhatsApp's parent company, opened up access to WhatsApp from linking to one PC only to up to four PCs.
Unfortunately, my article was not enough to stop many more people from becoming victims of the scam.
WhatsApp, unlike other social media platforms, operates similarly to email and short message systems. Due to the prevalent use of WhatsApp in business, WhatsApp has become part of the unofficial business suite companies use to disseminate information to their employees. As WhatsApp is an unofficial platform, it usually escapes the scrutiny of Data Loss Prevention (DLP) Specialists.
The lack of DLP oversight and the ease of linking a WhatsApp account to a device makes the platform an ideal target for scammers to hijack.
Singapore media has reported a spate of WhatsApp takeovers in the past week that prompted the Singapore Police Force (SPF) to state that they are working with Meta to remove these compromised accounts.
However, the move to get Meta to remove these compromised accounts would only be effective if the syndicates have made their presence via the Google search engine by paying for advertising spots. The syndicates may be paying for advertising spots in other search engines and social media platforms, too. Therefore, law enforcement agencies (LEA) should apprise these search engine operators of how scammers exploit their advertisement columns.
When writing this article, I found no fake WhatsApp link. However, it remains to pay to be vigilant.
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Danny Liew is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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