“Hello mom, my phone is broken. This is my new cell phone number, you can save it. Are you home?” Consumers nationwide are receiving similar messages via WhatsApp from brazen fraudsters. The messages are accompanied by kisses and hearts to inspire trust in the recipient. The fraudsters pose as close relatives - usually grandchildren, sons or daughters - and report an emergency. After a short back and forth, they ask for an amount of money to be transferred. The scam particularly targets seniors who use WhatsApp to stay in touch with their children.

Ms. L. from the Vordertaunus received a similar message via WhatsApp from a phone number she did not recognize. When asked, she quickly found out that the message did not come from her son. She didn't reply to the anonymous sender of the message and thereby prevented something worse from happening.
Older people are particularly affected
After exchanging banalities, fraudsters usually fake a financial emergency. The respective recipient is asked for help. In order to exert pressure, a particular urgency is feigned. Alleged unpaid bills or problems with online banking on the new cell phone serve as an excuse - after all, the old cell phone is supposedly gone. The money would be paid back in a few days. Once the money has been transferred, you won't see it again. The whole thing is reminiscent of the classic grandchild trick - only this time in digital form.
In the past few days, similar fraudulent WhatsApp messages have also been circulating in Hesse. The Frankfurt police warn about fraudulent WhatsApp messages. Seniors in particular are victims of this new scam.
Tips from the consumer advice center
“Never respond to requests for payment via messenger services,” recommends Selahattin Beser, consumer law consultant at the Hesse Consumer Center. “The fraud can usually be discovered if you call your relatives on the supposedly old number,” explains the consumer advocate. It is also advisable to report the incident to the police, take a screenshot of the WhatsApp message and block the sender.
Anyone who has already fallen into the trap should definitely inform their bank in order to stop or reverse any cash flows and file a criminal complaint with the police.
Phishing attacks and illegal data trading make this possible
Those affected usually wonder where callers get their private mobile phone numbers from. Unfortunately, this cannot be clarified in most cases. Fraudsters can usually rely on different sources. Among other things, criminals gain access to private telephone numbers through phishing attacks and illegal data trading on the Internet. Consumers should generally be careful and cautious when disclosing their private data on the Internet.
Source: consumer advice center
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