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India is one of the fastest adopters of technology in the world. Affordable smartphones and data plans have helped millions of users get on board with digital services like UPI, WhatsApp, and more.
Unfortunately, hackers also see this as an opportunity resulting in a surge in cyber crimes over the last few years. Miscreants have been using platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp to steal identities and then use the same to extort money from the victim and their friends and family.
Kolkata Police cyber cell has begun an awareness program on social media platforms to educate and protect citizens against possible online scams. According to the police, scammers made use of World Yoga Day 2023 momentum and targeted individuals claiming to offer a free link to join an online yoga session. When an unaware user clicks on the link, they will be asked to share a six-digit OTP. Once shared the scammers get remote access to the user’s WhatsApp account, where the same will be used to impersonate and extract money from friends and family, pretending to be in an emergency.
Some criminals take this a step further and force victims to invest in a bonus cryptocurrency, which will then be withdrawn, eliminating the digital trace of the scam.
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After several of these cases surfaced, Kolkata Cyber police are now warning users to be vigilant, especially while receiving a message with a link and also suggest users not forward these messages to anyone and report it to WhatsApp.
Ways to safeguard yourself from WhatsApp scams
Always be vigilant, and never click on an external link received on WhatsApp or as an SMS, unless you are sure. If someone from your contact requests for money, make sure that it’s indeed your friend or family member before transferring. The best way to do this is by video or voice calling them.
Never share sensitive information like OTP with someone over a message. Make sure that two-factor authentication is enabled on all social media platforms. Lastly, if you find a message suspicious, report it to WhatsApp or the respective platform moderators.
© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd
First published on: 27-07-2023 at 15:08 IST
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