“My life changed forever after that one video call on WhatsApp. What happened to me won’t leave me" — a victim of the burgeoning WhatsApp call scam spoke to News18, describing how he fell into the trap, and never came out of the shocking incident.
“I received a message from a number starting with ‘+92’. The person said he has all my data including my personal pictures and contact details. I ignored the messages and calls, then, he shared my morphed picture and demanded Rs 2 lakh," said the victim who has requested News18 for confidentiality of his personal details, including name and profession, for security reasons.
The victim said he later sought the help of the police and the case was closed in three months.
There are several hundred complaints that are being reported with the police and on social media about the WhatsApp scam via international numbers.
Let’s understand how the victims are being targeted through the unknown international numbers on WhatsApp.
Scam in the Name of Jobs
Scammers offer you a job through a WhatsApp link, which they insist you to click. In the beginning, the victims are paid a small amount so that trust can be built, but, eventually, they end up losing both money and data.
Sextortion
Probably, the most dangerous of them all is receiving a video call from an unknown international number on WhatsApp. Once you have answered the call, the person (the fraudster) on the other side starts recording the phone screen and uses threatening tactics, claiming that he would turn the video into pornography and make it viral on social media platforms in order to threaten and defame the victim.
Data Collection for Telemarketing
With new guidelines from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) tightening telemarketing rules, companies are turning to WhatsApp to reach out to users. To identify active WhatsApp numbers, companies use script software to make calls. Unfortunately, this compromises users’ privacy rights.
The Union government has also taken stock of the situation and sent a notice to WhatsApp to look into the growing menace of international spam calls, terming it as misuse and breach of users’ privacy.
The company maintains that “Protecting the privacy and security of users is fundamental to Meta and to WhatsApp. WhatsApp is a leader among end-to-end encrypted services in protecting user safety. However, bad actors find different ways to scam users. International scam calls are a new way that bad actors have recently adopted. By giving a missed call, they lead curious users to call or message back only to get scammed".
Police officials across different states have begun a crackdown on the swindlers. Prashant Gautam, DCP of Delhi Police’s Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO) said there is an uptick in the cases and the police are working to nab the scamsters. “Generally, a job is offered by scamsters in a particular way. In some cases, we have also seen that people get a video call from international numbers. Once you pick up the call, you don’t have control over your camera. The person on other side records you and then extorts money," Gautam explained.
How to Safeguard Yourself from These Calls
Restrict Privacy
The first step is to change ‘who can see’ settings on WhatsApp including the profile picture, last seen and online status. If you have ‘allowed to everyone’, change it to people in your contact list only.
Enable Two-factor Authentication
By enabling a two-factor authentication on your WhatsApp, an extra security layer gets added to your data. WhatsApp requires authentication from your email address, which enhances the overall data protection.
Block & Report
If you are already receiving such calls, the best thing to do is to report and block spam calls. So, the same number doesn’t make its way back to your phone and similar reports can encourage WhatsApp to disable the number.
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