My WhatsApp account was hacked. What should I do?
Re-register WhatsApp on your own phone with your number straight away; the moment you enter the new code, the other person is logged out. Then warn your contacts, because the hijacker is probably asking them for urgent EFTs in your name.
Accounts are usually taken over because a verification code was forwarded or a fake "WhatsApp support" asked for it. The scammer then messages your contacts with a story about an emergency and a bank account to pay into.
Step by step
- Open WhatsApp on your phone, enter your number and type the new code that arrives by SMS.
- If the hijacker turned on two-step verification, WhatsApp makes you wait before you can log in. Keep trying; do not pay anyone who offers to "recover" it.
- Tell your contacts by another channel (call, SMS, Facebook) not to send money to any request from your number.
- Turn on two-step verification yourself once you are back in.
- If someone did pay the scammer, they should phone their bank and open a case with SAPS.
Frequently asked questions
- Can the hacker read my old chats?
- They see what was on the phone they registered. Chats on your own phone stay there. Change passwords for anything you shared in chats.
Want to know if there are warning signs about the person you're chatting to? Veritaza checks the photos, the messages, the number, the email address, the name and the ID document, for R99.
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