WhatsApp OTP Scam Can Lock You Out Of Your Account: How To Be Safe

WhatsApp is being the hunting ground for hackers with a new scam message that disguises itself as an emergency message from a friend. It is important to note that the message does not take advantage of any technical vulnerability of the chat app. Instead it targets those who make a mistake of sharing an OTP online. Here is all you should know about the new WhatsApp OTP scam.

(Representative Image: AFP)

Hackers wanting to access people’s?WhatsApp?profile are now using a scam message to do so. This fraud message is being sent to users in the form of an emergency message to get their attention. At times, this message might come from a friend’s WhatsApp number.

Citing the emergency mentioned in the message, the scammers ask for an OTP that the targeted person gets on their number. They may pretend to have sent the OTP by mistake and hence ask the victim to forward it.?

The truth is that the OTP generated on your number is simply to verify your WhatsApp account. It is the same which users get when they login to their?WhatsApp account?for the first time on a phone.

So essentially the reason for the OTP mentioned in the message is not true. Instead, the hackers are trying to login to your account from their device and they only need the OTP for it. If anyone reveals the OTP to the sender of the message, scammers on the other end use it to gain access to their WhatsApp account, leaving the victim locked out of it.

Reuters

Once the hackers gain a victim, they further send the scam message to people on their friend list. This is how you can possibly receive this message from a friend and if you do, know that their WhatsApp account has possibly been compromised. It would hence be better to call the person to verify.

How to stay protected?

The foremost security measure that users can follow is to make sure they never share an OTP with anyone online. OTPs are often the last check of a security protocol, be it for accessing an account or making a payment. Once you provide someone with an OTP, it can be used to succeed in any such attempt.

Another way to secure your account against such attempts is to activate two-factor authentication on WhatsApp. Users can enable it under Account Setting accessible through the three-dot menu on the top right corner of the WhatsApp home screen.