New WhatsApp scam gives criminals access to accounts
A message asking someone to vote for an acquaintance can lead to a hidden link with an additional device.
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Police are warning about WhatsApp fraud in which criminals pretend to be someone the victim knows and ask them to vote for somebody. Anyone who then opens a link and shares a code or pairing confirmation may unknowingly add an additional device to the account.
The messages appear to come from someone in the recipient’s own contacts. The text might, for example, ask them to vote for a friend’s daughter. The link leads to a replica website asking for a telephone number and a code. That code can then be used to gain access to the WhatsApp account.
With this method, WhatsApp continues to work on the original phone. As a result, victims do not always immediately notice that another device has been linked. Criminals can read messages from that device and send new messages to contacts on the victim’s behalf.
This can make the scam harder to recognise than an account that suddenly stops working altogether. Acquaintances may trust the message because it appears to come from an existing conversation. The same link may then spread further, or someone may ask for money on the victim’s behalf.
Police advise people not to open unfamiliar links and not to approve pairing codes or confirmations for linking devices when they have not requested this themselves. Anyone who is unsure can check which devices have access in WhatsApp under ‘Linked devices’.
An unfamiliar device should be logged out there immediately. Police also advise filing a report when fraud is involved. If money has been transferred or bank details have been shared, the bank should also be informed as soon as possible.
The warning concerns account security and not a vulnerability that automatically exposes WhatsApp to all users. It is not yet known how many Dutch accounts have been taken over using this specific method.
The scam resembles older forms of help-request fraud, but uses a voting request as the pretext rather than a direct request for money. The innocent appearance of such a request may itself make people less critical when looking at the link.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The method and advice described are consistent with the cited police information and local news reports. The article makes no claims about nationwide numbers or the origin of the campaign.
- confirmed Criminals are distributing messages asking people to vote. — Sleutelstad describes this police warning. source
- confirmed A code entered on a fake website can provide access to a WhatsApp account. — The police information and the news report describe the account takeover. source
- confirmed A linked device can read messages and send them on the victim’s behalf. — Rodi describes how this method works. source
- confirmed Police advise logging out unfamiliar devices immediately. — Mentioned in the police and news sources. source
Editor's note
The method and prevention tips have been described by the police and two public news sources. No reliable nationwide figures were found on the scale of this specific campaign.Sources
More on this in Dutch media
- Het Parool — „whatsapp cybercrime”
- NRC — „whatsapp cybercrime”
- Tweakers — „whatsapp cybercrime”