The daily influx of fake and fraudulent messages on WhatsApp has everyone worried. Now, the company has introduced a new feature that alerts you to these scammers in advance. Learn how to activate this new setting.
WhatsApp's safety from fraudsters
If you receive a WhatsApp message from an unknown number and the sender urges you to send money, open a link, or provide any information, it's important to be cautious. Often, fraudsters try to gain your trust by posing as a bank employee, friend, or company representative. Such messages may seem completely normal, making them difficult to suspect.
To mitigate this problem, WhatsApp is working on a feature called Scam Alert. Its purpose is to alert users in time when they see suspicious messages. The feature is available as a separate setting on phones and requires manual activation. However, it hasn't yet rolled out to everyone's WhatsApp. Learn how it works, where to find the setting, and what to do if you see an alert.
Scam Alert will warn you about suspicious messages.
Scam Alert specifically monitors messages from unknown numbers. WhatsApp's machine learning model analyzes message patterns on the phone. If it detects signs of fraud in the message, the user may see a warning in the chat. The user then has the option to block the number, report it, or continue the conversation. If the alert appears false, the chat may also be marked as trusted.
This feature won't treat every unknown message as a scam. Its model attempts to identify patterns and conversation patterns that have been observed in previous scam messages. Its purpose is to alert the user that the person on the other end may be a scammer. It's then up to the user to choose whether to block the number or continue communicating with the person.
Where can I find the setting and how to turn it on?
If you have a Scam Alert option on your WhatsApp account, open the app and go to Settings. Tap Account and look for the Scam Alert option. The feature can be turned on from there. This setting has only recently rolled out to some Android beta users, so it's unlikely every WhatsApp user will see this option. iPhone users haven't yet received this feature; they may have to wait a little longer.
Will the feature be visible after the update?
Many people are wondering if this feature will be available on WhatsApp after the update. As the company has informed, this feature hasn't been rolled out to everyone yet. WhatsApp is gradually rolling it out to some users. If you don't see Scam Alert on your account, there's no need to search for the settings or enable it with an unknown app. You'll be able to use the feature only after you access your account.
Messages will be checked on the phone itself.
An important aspect of Scam Alert is the privacy of user chats. According to Meta, suspicious messages are verified on the phone itself. Message content is not sent to WhatsApp or Meta for verification, and the feature does not automatically report any chats. After seeing the alert, the user decides whether to block the number, report it, or continue the conversation.
If you report a number yourself, that's a separate action. User permission is required to send a report. Keeping Scam Alert enabled is optional and can be turned off in Settings. It's unclear how effective this feature will be in protecting against scammers, but it can certainly alert people and make them think.
