Zwickau police warn of new WhatsApp scam

The police in Zwickau are warning of a new scam on the instant messaging service WhatsApp. The perpetrators take over the users' accounts and then ask the victims' contacts for money, the police said. Since mid-August, twelve such acts have been reported in the Zwickau police area. The perpetrators stole between 500 and 615 euros each.

According to police, those affected initially receive messages asking them to take part in an online vote or survey for athletes or to support someone in a vote. To take part in the vote, a link should be accessed and a QR code scanned. In this way, the perpetrators manage to link third-party devices to the account.

If the perpetrators then have access to the account, they can write to their contacts in the name of the actual account holder. They then ask for money under various pretexts. For the recipients, the messages appear particularly credible. The police advise not to scan unknown QR codes and to regularly check the linked devices on WhatsApp.