WhatsApp is increasingly being used by cybercriminals as a platform for attempted fraud, posing as official WhatsApp support.

Fake WhatsApp support contacts users

The blog WA Beta Info, which specializes in WhatsApp, is currently reporting on an account that acts as a WhatsApp support account and proactively sends messages to users.

With these messages, the fake account tries, for example, to obtain credit card details or wants to find out the user's six-digit verification code. With the former, the fraudsters have access to the credit card account, with the latter they can take over a WhatsApp account and, for example, start fraud attempts against the contacts of the deceived user.

Extreme caution is required here and every WhatsApp user should question such “support requests” very critically and first and foremost check the seriousness of the account sending the message. Important: Not every green tick is the real green tick.

What does the real WhatsApp support account look like?

WABetaInfo has published an example photo of how fake accounts appear and compared them directly to the official support account.

Comparing a fake and official WhatsApp support account. Source: WA Beta Info
Comparing a fake and official WhatsApp support account. Source: WA Beta Info ( HERE )

The real account has the typical WhatsApp logo as a profile photo. The account name is below the profile photo, here WhatsApp Support. And next to the profile name there is the WhatsApp green tick, which clearly verifies the account as real. This hook cannot be faked by cybercriminals. Profile photos with green ticks, on the other hand, can be easily designed by fraudsters using an image editing program. Such hooks have zero relevance when it comes to the authenticity of the profile.

The real account does not have a phone number below the profile photo, but rather the account name WhatsApp Support.

So if a message arrives supposedly from WhatsApp that asks for sensitive data and may be under time pressure to answer, take a deep breath and check carefully whether the account is even real. If it does not meet the criteria just described (green WhatsApp logo, account name WhatsApp Support and the green verification tick next to it), it is not genuine.

  • do not respond to the message
  • Block number
  • Report the incident to real WhatsApp support

He can and will take care of it.

How do I contact WhatsApp Messenger Support?

You can easily reach real support. Open WhatsApp on your smartphone and click the three dots in the top right. Then go to “Settings,” then “Help,” then “Contact Us.” You can now contact support in writing.

What would real WhatsApp support never ask?

There are some things that real WhatsApp support would never ask about. Here is a brief overview:

  • No credit card information
  • No six-digit verification code
  • No PIN for two-factor authentication

Grandchild trick on WhatsApp

Another trick used to trick WhatApp users is the grandchild trick, which is known in many forms.
Scammers pose as grandchildren who have lost their cell phones and therefore have a new phone number. They later demand money from their victims because they are in an acute emergency situation and put their victims under such emotional stress that they let caution go and hand over money. And don't be surprised by the often dubious circumstances surrounding the transfer of money. We have already reported on this several times in the past, for example HERE .

Conclusion

Cybercriminals are increasingly using WhatsApp for their fraud attempts. They are currently posing as WhatsApp support, proactively contacting users and trying to request sensitive data from users such as credit card information or verification codes or PINs. Real support would never ask for such data.

The real support account has the green WhatsApp logo as the profile picture, the profile name is WhatsApp Support and next to the account name there is the green verification tick that identifies the profile as real.
If the green tick is within the profile picture, it is a fake account. Then absolute caution is required. Then the only correct course of action is: do not respond, block and inform real support.

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Notes:
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