WhatsApp deletes nearly 7 million accounts linked to scams

WhatsApp is rolling out new security tools to help users identify scams, including activating a safety rating when a user is added to a new group by an unknown contact.

US technology group Meta recently said that WhatsApp, one of its popular applications, has deleted 6.8 million accounts found to be linked to criminal fraud centers, specializing in targeting online users globally.

The move is part of a large-scale campaign to crack down on increasingly sophisticated and complex online fraud.

In an announcement on August 5, Meta said the account deletions took place in the first 6 months of 2025.

The tech company also said WhatsApp is rolling out new security tools to help users identify scams, including activating a safety rating when a user is added to a new group by an unknown contact who is not in their contacts. In addition, experimental warnings also encourage users to pause interactions before responding.

Notably, Meta highlights that one of the strongest sources of fraud is organized crime fraud centers, which operate forced laborers involved in illegal activities.

Most of these scams are deployed across multiple platforms to avoid detection. Meta said a scam campaign could start with a text message or dating app, then move to a social media site or online payment platform.

Meta said scammers even use AI-generated content like ChatGPT to lure users into activities like fake likes, disguised pyramid schemes, or cryptocurrency investment scams.

Meta said the company traced the activity to a fraud center in Asia and worked with OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, to stop the large-scale fraud campaign.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/whatsapp-xoa-gan-7-trieu-tai-khoan-lien-quan-den-lua-dao-post1054271.vnp