Meta is adding more fraud detection tools to Facebook, Messenger, and WhatsApp that can help users protect their accounts. In its announcement, Meta says the new features aim to alert users to suspicious activity before they engage with it, such as friend requests from strangers and device connection notifications, because “we know that fraudsters try to evade our detection and may not immediately use accounts maliciously.”
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WhatsApp users will now receive a warning when red flags are detected in behavioral signals for device connection requests, helping prevent scammers from linking other WhatsApp accounts to their own device. Meta reports that these notifications will show the WhatsApp user where the suspicious request originates, giving them the chance to review the request before accepting it.
“ For example, they may pretend to be a talent contest that asks you to vote by going to a website and entering your phone number, followed by a device link code to your WhatsApp ,” Meta said in the statement. “ They may also try to trick you into scanning a QR code under false pretenses, which will then link the scammer’s device to your account. ”
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Similar alerts are also being tested for suspicious friend requests on Facebook. The experimental warnings will appear when Facebook users send or receive a request from “an account that shows certain signs of suspicious activity,” according to Meta, such as a lack of mutual friends or a location in other countries. The goal is to help Facebook users be better informed before deciding whether to accept, reject, or block suspicious requests.
Meta also expands advanced fraud detection on Messenger to additional countries. Based on tools for detecting suspicious chat activity introduced almost a decade ago, the expanded tool will prompt users to share recent chat messages for an AI fraud review if it detects patterns of common scams in conversations with a new contact, such as suspicious job offers.
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If a potential fraud is detected, the tool will encourage the user to block or report the account they were chatting with.
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