Receiving dubious calls, messages on WhatsApp? Here's what you should know

Users receive both audio and video calls from these phone numbers which mostly carry country codes belonging to Ethiopia, Morocco, and Swaziland, among others

WhatsApp, one of the most widely used instant messaging applications, is making news for scams happening using its platform. Users have reported receiving calls and messages from unknown sources which look like international phone numbers.

Users receive both audio and video calls from these phone numbers, which mostly carry country codes of Ethiopia, Morocco, and Swaziland, among others. However, it cannot be said with certainty if these numbers are actually dialled from the country codes these dubious phone numbers carry.

Often, it has been seen that international phone numbers are available for purchase and can be used to make WhatsApp calls while sitting in the same location as the recipient.

A number of people took to Twitter to complain about such calls.

WhatsAppSpamCalls

WhatsAppSpams

These callers seek to collect sensitive user information using various methods. One such trick was of using spam calls to offer part-time job offers, which ask people to like random YouTube videos, an Entracker report said.

Such calls target innocent users and try to lure them by telling them about offers to earn several thousand rupees daily. At present, ignoring such spam calls and messages appears to be the best way to protect oneself.

WhatsApp has emerged as a cost-effective method for these spammers to make international calls using the internet, which otherwise costs significantly more if done using a cellular network. Moreover, since WhatsApp offers end-to-end encryption for calls and messages, it is difficult to identify such individuals.