WhatsApp launches safety tool against fraud cryptocurrency trading group chats

In India, more than 65 crore citizens have access to mobile phones. However, very few understand the dangers of online platforms.

In the last several months, there has been a surge in cyber scams such as digital arrest and cryptocurrency trading on WhatsApp Messenger.

Threat actors randomly add people's phone numbers to a WhatsApp group chatroom and offer lucrative returns for investments in cryptocurrency. Several naive users have fallen victim to these scams and lost their hard-earned money.

To prevent such cyberfraud, WhatsApp has introduced new safety features. Whenever a person who is not in the user's contact list adds him/her to a WhatsApp group, the messenger app will show key information about the group and tips to stay safe.

WhatsApp Safety feature.

With this information (as shown in the picture above), users can get an idea of what this WhatsApp group is about and decide whether to stay or exit the group instantly.

Also, cybercriminals will try to initiate a one-on-one chat on WhatsApp; here, too, the app will caution the user that the person is not in the contact list and be wary of continuing the conversation with him/her.

"We encourage you to pause, question, and verify before responding to a suspicious or unusual message, especially if it’s from a number you don’t know promising fast money," says the WhatsApp team.

In a related development, WhatsApp has begun testing a new voice call reminder feature.

WhatsApp will offer multiple options to set a reminder for users to return the missed call. It will have three preset options-- after 2 hours, after 8 hours, after 24 hours and the custom. The latter allows the user to set the timing as per his/her convenience.

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