WhatsApp accounts are in danger all over the world, but this seems to be a little more the case in Mexico. At least this is what we understand from the report of the CCPSJ (Citizen Council for Security and Justice): WhatsApp hacks increased by 672% in all the countries.
And worst of all, it’s not because cybercriminals have careful systems to access cell phones like iPhones, since most are produced by user-supplied installations. Not because they want to, of course, but because they are victims of increasingly elaborate scams that you need to know about to avoid them.
WhatsApp kidnappings in exchange for money
According to various experts on the subject, such as Salvador Guerrero Ciprés, president of the CCPSJ, those responsible for the majority of WhatsApp account thefts are authentic criminal gangs. To the victims They ask them between 3,000 and 5,000 pesos in exchange for collecting their accountswhich could earn them around 60,000 pesos per day just by scamming 20 people.
Most experts agree that the origin of the thefts comes from very localized scams. As is the case in countries like USA, most scam attempts involve identity theft. And throughout Latin America, the most widespread practice is to impersonate WhatsApp itself.
Contact scammers pretending to be part of WhatsApp support, alluding to a certain type of problem that the account may have or to a new feature that could not be implemented. They thus try to gain the trust of the victim until, thanks to social engineering, they obtain their accreditations.
Typically, this is achieved by asking them to share a screen under the guise of helping them step by step to solve problems or implement the new thing in the application. The victim, sure to speak with WhatsApp technical support, agrees. At this time, scammers see everything, so if they receive an SMS or connection confirmation message, they can take advantage of it and, at the same time, connect to the victim’s number.
How to protect yourself from these scams
Needless to say that carrying distrust as a flag is vital. It doesn’t matter if the person writing or calling you claims to be a reliable company. It’s not common for a company to contact us this way, let alone to notify us of a problem or make changes to our account.
Likewise, it is also recommended enable WhatsApp two-step verification system. It’s a very simple process that involves opening the WhatsApp app, going to the “Settings” tab, and then account > Two-step verification. There you can add an access PIN. It is also advisable to enable passwords in Setting > account > Access keys.
SO, In case you have any doubts about the person writing to us, the best thing to do is to ignore it and contact the company via reliable phone numbers and emails. In the case of WhatsApp itself, there is a contact form on its website.
By | Xataka Mexico
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