Criminals are now trying to scam you through WhatsApp as well as emails and texts – this is how to make sure you’re not caught
Fraudsters are sending out fake Marks & Spencer, Tesco and Asda vouchers on WhatsApp, Action Fraud has warned.
Messages look like they’ve been sent from an actual contact, but the recipient name is fake and designed to trick you into clicking on the URL to claim the alleged voucher.
Two members of the Daily Mirror Money team have been sent the same one, reading: “Hello, ASDA is giving away £250 Free Voucher to celebrate 68th anniversary, go here to get it … Enjoy and thanks me later !.”
But the retailer isn’t giving out any £250 vouchers at all. The only semblance of truth is that, indeed, it is 68-years-old.
There are two tell-tale signs the scam is fake: the spelling and grammar mistakes and, if you manually type in the supposed url mentioned in the offer (http://www.asda.com/mycoupon), you will see that the page does not exist on Asda.
But Action Fraud warns if you click on the URL you are taken to a fake website designed to trick you into handing over personal information.
Worse, once you click fraudsters can also collect personal information from your device by installing cookies on your phone that track you, or add browser extensions that can be used to show you advertisements.
The scam uses remarkably similar wording to a string of Facebook scams that offered people free flights and another for supermarket vouchers .
Earlier this year ActionFraud also warned that fraudsters were tricking WhatsApp users into downloading a fake version of “WhatsApp Gold” which infected Android devices with malware.
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