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Meta has blocked over 6.8 million WhatsApp accounts that are connected to scams during the first half of this year. A large proportion of these reports were linked to organised scam centres in Southeast Asia, where gangs of criminals tend to use forced labour to conduct fraudulent activities.
The removal is a component of WhatsApp's broader campaign against internet fraud, such as newly added safety features that alert users when they are being added to group chats by unfamiliar contacts. The company stated that it was working in advance by deactivating accounts before the scammers would use them.
These figures were disclosed by Meta as it released tools that could help them avoid becoming a victim of fraud. Among the courses adopted by WhatsApp, there is the case of scammers who take over the accounts or set up group chats that advertise false investments. The scams usually start with a single message and conclude with a cryptocurrency or payment platform, and victims end up paying in order to access false profits.
In one such high-profile case, Meta partnered with OpenAI to break up a Cambodian scam network. A group employed ChatGPT to come up with the instructions for a fake rent-a-scooter pyramid scheme that would promise users cash in exchange for likes on social media.
The crackdown was welcomed by UK consumer rights group Which?, but it called on Meta to go further to prevent scams across all its platforms, including Facebook and Instagram. Lawyer Lisa Webb emphasised that deceptive advertisements and employment opportunities continue to manifest themselves, and the Online Safety Act should be enforced more decisively to make tech businesses responsible.
Law enforcement agencies in Southeast Asia are also striving to create more awareness. Police in Singapore have urged users to be wary of unsolicited messages and to turn on WhatsApp two-step verification.
