“Our team identified the accounts and disabled them before the criminal organisations that created them could use them,” WhatsApp external affairs director Clair Deevy said.
Often run by organised gangs, the scams range from bogus cryptocurrency investments to get-rich-quick pyramid schemes, the company’s executives said in a briefing.
“There is always a catch, and it should be a red flag for everyone: You have to pay upfront to get promised returns or earnings,” the Meta-owned company said in a blog post.
WhatsApp detected and banned more than 6.8 million accounts linked to scam centres, most of them in South-east Asia, according to Meta.
WhatsApp and Meta worked with OpenAI to disrupt a scam traced to Cambodia that used ChatGPT to generate text messages containing a link to a WhatsApp chat to hook victims, according to the tech companies.
Meta on Aug 5 began prompting WhatsApp users to be wary when added to unfamiliar chat groups by people they do not know.
New “safety overviews” provide information about the group and tips on spotting scams, along with the option of making a quick exit.
“We’ve all been there: Someone you don’t know attempting to message you or add you to a group chat, promising low-risk investment opportunities or easy money, or saying you have an unpaid bill that’s overdue,” Meta said in the blog post.
“The reality is, these are often scammers trying to prey on people’s kindness, trust and willingness to help – or, their fears that they could be in trouble if they don’t send money fast.” AFP
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