Action Fraud
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Why these fake WhatsApp emails and texts will catch people out

Fraudsters are sending out messages claiming to be from WhatsApp in order to steal banking and personal information. Here is why they might catch people out.

  • WhatsApp stopped charging users in 2016.
  • Emails and text messages claim that your subscription has expired.

Long term users of WhatsApp will remember paying a 0.99p annual fee to use the messaging service. In 2016, this was scrapped by Facebook who took over running of the company after buying it for £11.4bn.

That means since 2016, the service has been free for every user. 

Whilst late adopters of the service might look at the email below and simply brush it off, long term users will remember paying and could quite easily think the app has gone back to its subscription model and get caught out. 

The emails claim your “subscription will be ending soon” and are after your banking information. We have been getting an increasing number of reports about them over the past couple of days. 

Click here for full press release

 

Channel website: http://www.actionfraud.police.uk/

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