Beware the new scam that is being used to access WhatsApp accounts

As the most popular messaging platform in the world, WhatsApp is no stranger to scams and hacks aimed at unlawfully gaining access to the accounts of its users. This latest scam has been doing the rounds in Pakistan and has incurred a plethora of complaints from concerned users.

As it happens, a good number of people of late have been receiving fake calls from individuals who claim to be PTA officials. These officials proceed to ask for verification codes that have been sent to the users’ numbers. In essence, these impostors are trying to gain access to your account by convincing you to give up the verification code that has been sent to you by WhatsApp.

Aside from being absolutely wary of any calls that you receive from people claiming to be PTA officials, there is an additional security measure that you can adopt to keep yourself safe from these malicious advances. You can add two-step verification to your account, which can be enabled by accessing the relevant option from the Account settings. Upon tapping it, you will be prompted to enter a 6-digit PIN code, which will be required every time you want to log in to your account.

This will serve as a fairly effective obstacle for anyone attempting to wrongfully access your account because even if they have your number as well as the verification code sent to you, they can’t log in unless they know this 6-digit PIN code.

While most of us are clearly not in the habit of establishing two-step verification for our WhatsApp accounts, doing so is imperative now as it will protect you from the malicious scam and ensure that you are contacts and messages are not revealed to someone else.