South Africans warned as WhatsApp scams become more sophisticated

South Africa – South Africans have been warned about increasingly sophisticated WhatsApp scams after digital banking crime cost victims R2.4 billion in 2025, highlighting the growing threat posed by impersonation, account hijacking and social engineering.

According to Daily Investor, citing figures from the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC), the losses were recorded across approximately 110,000 incidents, representing a 29.2% increase from the previous year.

One common scam involves criminals posing as family members who claim to have changed their phone numbers and urgently need money. Victims are pressured into transferring funds before verifying the request independently.

Richard Ford, chief technology officer at Integrity360 Group, warned that criminals exploit panic and trust to persuade victims to send money.

“The whole trick runs on ten minutes of panic. They invent an emergency and count on the parent paying before anyone picks up the phone to check,” Ford said, as quoted by Daily Investor.

Impersonation scams

The threat becomes more difficult to detect when fraudsters take control of legitimate WhatsApp accounts by tricking users into sharing the six-digit registration code sent to their phones. They can then impersonate the account owner and approach contacts who trust the existing conversation.

A Moneyweb report published on 7 October also highlighted the growing prevalence of WhatsApp scams and the role of artificial intelligence in digital fraud.

Meanwhile, the Sunday Times reported in August that criminals were combining phishing, social engineering, leaked credentials and SIM-swap attacks to hijack accounts and defraud victims.

Financial crime compliance and fraud prevention expert Hannes Bezuidenhout told the publication: “They no longer rely on a single technique but combine phishing, social engineering, leaked credentials and SIM swap attacks to increase their chances of success.”

The risks extend beyond family impersonation scams. In a separate incident reported by The Citizen, KwaZulu-Natal police warned job seekers about fraudsters using WhatsApp to advertise fake South African Police Service positions and demand payments of up to R15,000.

Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Paul Magwaza stressed: “Nobody should be asked to pay to get employed in the police; whoever is doing so is committing a crime.”

How to protect yourself

Consumers are advised to verify payment requests by calling the person on a previously saved number rather than relying on messages, voice notes or calls from unfamiliar numbers. Families can also agree on a private code word to authenticate urgent requests.

WhatsApp users should never share their six-digit registration codes and should enable two-step verification to strengthen account security.

Anyone whose account has been compromised should alert their contacts through another communication channel. Victims who have transferred money should immediately contact their bank’s fraud department using an official contact number.

The warnings underline the importance of independently verifying identities and payment requests as criminals increasingly exploit trusted digital communication platforms to steal money.