WhatsApp fraud is a scam that involves impersonating a family member, often a child, to request that an urgent payment be made by wire transfer.
What are the stages of this fraud?
- Sending SMS
The identity of a close person or family member, such as a child of the victim, is impersonated via SMS with an ambiguous message without personal details and under the pretext of loss or theft of the mobile phone.
The SMS indicates that they should contact another phone number via a WhatsApp message.
- A WhatsApp conversation is started
Once the victim contacts the offender via WhatsApp and the offender senses the victim’s interest, a conversation begins in which the scammer conveys urgency or threat.
The conversation usually has no personal details and there is never an opportunity to communicate by phone call.
- An amount of money is requested urgently
The offender asks for various amounts of money immediately because of some unforeseen event that he has to deal with and cannot do so because he does not have access to his bank.
The excuses for requesting the money are usually the purchase of a computer, making an investment or any expense that does not arouse too much suspicion.
- End of contact
Once the cybercriminal has received the amount of money he deems appropriate, or when he considers that he cannot continue with the deception, he completely cuts off communication with the victim.