Beware of these popular WhatsApp scams

[Jack]

WhatsApp is popular for a reason – free messaging that works over Wi-Fi and can reach people all around the world definitely beats your typical texting plan. But unfortunately, the popularity of this app has attracted countless scammers. From investment scams to fake updates, WhatsApp users everywhere are targets for cyber criminals. Read on to learn about popular WhatsApp scams, and learn how to keep yourself safe from them.

How to avoid fake versions of WhatsApp
To ensure you install and use only the authentic version of WhatsApp, never download and install WhatsApp from a link sent to you. For any mobile platform device, only download from the approved App store (Google Play, Apple’s App Store, etc.). If you are unsure whether the version you are currently using on your phone is legitimate, remove the app and then download it from the approved App store.

Fake voicemail

This scam is nothing more than a fake voicemail — all you have to do is click!

Those targeted by this scam receive a message with the subject line, “Incoming Voice Message”. Victims only need to click for hackers to have access to their personal information, and even potentially lock them out of their own phones!

WhatsApp Gold edition
The WhatsApp Gold edition is a scam that has been pushed through social media networks. It’s a fake premium version that allegedly has fancy emoticons and custom backgrounds.

But once you sign up for this fake upgrade, you’ll be charged up to 40 dollars per month. An updated version of this scam called “WhatsApp Elegant Gold” is also making the rounds. It leads users to a web page that asks for a phone number in order to update to a newer, “better” edition of WhatsApp.

WhatsApp’s Spy
There are actually a number of different applications that help people spy on others through WhatsApp. The sad reality is, if you Google “WhatsApp Spy”, you’ll get a slew of articles telling you how to spy on other people, instead of how to protect yourself against this clear invasion of privacy.

However, there’s a twist: the majority of these “spy apps” are actually scams that load malware onto the would-be-spy’s phone. So if you are tempted to use one of these apps yourself, be warned that you might get what you deserve!

Read more: Beware of these popular WhatsApp scams

 

[LabZero]

I think get apps only from official sources, use common sense and maybe an antivirus is more than enough to avoid this and other fake apps.
In the case of Android for example, it is also very important to check the permissions of every app that we install.

One of the weaknesses of Android is the permission management : a bit too "light". In fact, Andriod not offers a setting (or at least not clearly) that allows to reduce the permissions required by the various applications by granting only the basic ones.
To complicate the situation, there is the bad habit of many users that is to accept the permissions required by the app during installation without check them.
Installing what may seem like a legitimate Android app, you are likely to give sensitive and personal data to criminals.
When you install an Android app, it is always important to examine which permissions are requested and possibly prevent the download if necessary permissions should be too large.

 

[jamescv7]

Only people who either commit mistakes unintentionally or fool just for fun where may fall on those very classy and 'desperate'/'obvious'.

The power of those common applications that uses majority should lessen the copycats and scams, which why ratings review are few or none unlike the known ones.