New AI system will identify fraud messages on WhatsApp, Facebook, will get alert on fake friend request

Online scams are increasing rapidly and people are being targeted especially on messaging platforms. In view of this threat, Meta has introduced new anti-scam tools on its platforms. These tools will work on WhatsApp, Facebook and other meta products and will alert users about possible fraud.

Meta says that the purpose of these tools is to warn users about scams in advance and protect them from fraud.

How will scam alert work on WhatsApp?

A big threat on WhatsApp is related to device linking. Many scammers try to link a user’s account to another device by using this feature.

Now WhatsApp in such cases:

• Will show alert on suspicious device linking request
• Will give the user the option to accept or reject the linking.
• will warn about potential risks
• If the user accidentally allows linking, the scammer can read his messages and misuse many features. Therefore the new alert system will help in reducing this risk.

You will get warning even on suspicious messages
Many scams on WhatsApp happen through messages sent from unknown numbers. In the new system, the platform will try to identify the pattern of such messages.

If the app suspects a message is a scam:

• User will get scam alert notification
• Will be informed about possible fraud
• Users will be advised to be careful

New security feature will come on Facebook also
Meta is also bringing a similar feature on its social media platform Facebook. The platform can show an alert if a user receives a friend request from a suspicious account.

For this the system will check a few things:

• Location of the requester
• He has mutual friends with you
• account activity
• If any account seems suspicious, a notification will be given to the user to be careful.

Encryption and Scam Challenge
WhatsApp has end-to-end encryption, which protects the user’s privacy. But this feature sometimes makes it difficult to catch scammers.

For this reason, governments and regulatory agencies are demanding tech companies to adopt new measures to prevent online scams. Meta says that the new tools will help increase protection from scams while maintaining user privacy.