“Hello dad, I changed my phone”, beware of this very common scam on WhatsApp

For several weeks, a scam has continued to spread on Whatsapp and particularly targets adults and elderly people.

Whatsapp may well be a fantastic messaging application, but the solution created by Meta (parent company of Facebook and Instagram) is also a great one. ;eacute;real nest & spam, bot and other malicious acts. Hackers have no shortage of ingenuity. to develop new schemes that could steal your personal data.

Among the latest scams that are very widespread on Whatsapp, we still find calling your bank, but also adding ' discussions to try to seduce you and steal your banking details and draw on your savings.

A new type of attack has been causing carnage for several weeks. The latter not only takes a toll on users, but also on users. their families. The latter begins with a simple message sent to you. on your mobile: "hi dad, I broke  my smartphone", "hello mom, I changed" phone number… The message differs, but you get the general idea : steal your identity from someone close to you in order to gain your trust and make people believe that the rest of your exchanges come from someone you know.

By pretending to be someone from your family, the hacker will ask you to add them on Whatsapp. The latter will then try to extort your personal data, particularly banking data, to draw on your savings and scam you. The attacker may also try to send you links to make you download pirated software and infect your computer or phone.

This scam has continued to proliferate for several months. The site Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr notably reportedé that this type of technique, called "phishing" (or phishing) remained the most used method for online scams since it represents nearly 38% of cyber threats.

If in doubt, don't hesitate to ask. call your loved ones to make sure that they are the ones who sent you the message. the suspicious message. Block the contact in question immediately and do not hesitate to contact them immediately. use the "report user"button by clicking on their profile and scrolling down to the bottom of the available options. By dint of reporting, the pirate profile will eventually be deleted. by the moderators of the application.