More and more cases of attempts to rip off smartphone users using WhatsApp tricks are becoming known. However, the police are increasingly reporting success in catching the perpetrators because the victims react with presence of mind.

Success in Freckenhorst

Thanks to the good cooperation between witnesses, bank employees and the police, a 59-year-old from Freckenhorst was saved from financial damage.

The 59-year-old received a text message from her alleged daughter on Wednesday. This text message said that the alleged daughter's cell phone was broken and that she now had a new cell phone with a new number. The Freckenhorst woman asked the caller whether it was her daughter, which the fraudster confirmed. She suggested to the woman that she could not be called because the microphone on the new cell phone was somehow defective. The perpetrators asked the 59-year-old to pay a company bill for a four-figure amount. In the belief that she was helping her real daughter, the Freckenhorster woman transferred the desired amount to the specified account. Shortly afterwards, the real daughter contacted her mother and explained that she had not asked for any money or a transfer.

When the 59-year-old informed the police, she was still in contact with the perpetrators. Thanks to quick instructions from the police, supportive employees in the bank and the good cooperation of everyone involved, the transferred money could be transferred back to the original account.

Success also in Gummersbach

A fraudster who almost tricked a 77-year-old woman from Gummersbach with the WhatsApp trick was almost there. Here, too, the senior citizen had received a message via WhatsApp: “Mom, I lost my cell phone, I'm using my old cell phone and have a new number.” Believing she was chatting with her daughter, she initially had no suspicions about her asked for a transfer to be made because this didn't work on the old cell phone.

The 77-year-old was already standing at the bank counter with a transfer slip when the matter seemed a little strange to her. After speaking to a bank employee who advised her to call the police, the senior citizen filed a report and threw the transfer slip in the trash.

Windberg: Reacted too late

On Monday, May 23rd, a 60-year-old woman from Windberg fell victim to con artists who obtained a four-figure amount of money from her using the WhatsApp scam.

At around 12:50 p.m. the woman received a message from her alleged son. He wrote that he had lost his cell phone and therefore had to get a new number. Since he had to make a transfer for a four-digit amount of money, he asked the 60-year-old to do it for him. The woman then went to her bank branch and made the transfer to the specified account.

Only then did she consult with her real son and the fraud was exposed. The 60-year-old then contacted the police and filed a complaint.

How does the WhatsApp scam work?

This type of fraud has become very common recently and is successful in many cases. In order not to fall into the trap of fraudsters, you should always contact us personally before you ask for money.

The strangers often send WhatsApp or SMS and pretend to be a familiar person:

  • Children who supposedly had a new number
  • Relatives who are in an emergency situation
  • Partners involved in an accident

In the news, the perpetrators often demand money transfers. The contact is usually quite personal, so that their victims believe they are talking to real relatives.

What to do if you receive a suspicious message?

If you receive a message like this:

  • Ask things that only the right relative/acquaintance can know
  • Under no circumstances should you transfer money
  • Call the number you know and not the number you don't know
  • Check with family members and try to reach the real person

Further information and help can be found here: If anything seems strange or strange to you, inform the police on 110.

Warn about grandchild trick 2.0

If you know older people, please warn them about this perfidious form of WhatsApp scam.

Also interesting: Whatsapp trap snapped

Source: Warendorf police , Mönchengladbach police, Oberbergischer Kreis police authority

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Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )