Gift Card and Recharge Code Payment Scam on WhatsApp

How it looks on WhatsApp, the red flags and what to do.

WhatsApp is private and fast, which scammers like: a "wrong number" chat can turn into a task, an investment tip or a payment request within minutes. Gift Card and Recharge Code Payment Scam is one of the ways this shows up: A caller or chat contact asks you to buy gift vouchers and read out the codes, claiming it fixes a problem. The codes are spent within minutes.

What gift card and recharge code payment scam looks like on WhatsApp

• A PDF, APK or image that must be opened to "see the details".
• A link that pretends to be a wa.me, courier or bank page.
• A message from an unknown number, often with a stock photo of a smiling person.

The set-up depends on the story. In one version a message arrives from a number using your manager's photo, saying he is in a meeting and needs vouchers for a client. In another a caller poses as a tax or telecom officer and says a penalty can be paid only by vouchers. In a third a seller on a marketplace asks to be paid in recharge codes instead of money.

Red flags to check on the WhatsApp message

• A government officer or a company says a penalty or fee must be paid with gift vouchers.
• A message from a 'boss' or friend on a new number asks for vouchers urgently.
• You are told not to call or tell anyone.
• Codes must be sent as photos or text rather than redeemed by you.
• A file ending in .apk arrives; never install it.
• Someone asks for the six-digit code WhatsApp sent you by SMS.

What to do

1. Stop buying vouchers and call the person on a number you already know.
2. Remember that no tax office, bank or telecom company takes payment in gift vouchers.
3. Do not share any voucher code, even partly.
4. Open the chat, tap the contact name and choose Block and report.
5. If it was a "friend", call them on the number you already have and ask.
6. Turn on two-step verification in WhatsApp settings so a stolen SMS code is not enough.

Inside WhatsApp use Block and report; for numbers that call or text you, the Sanchar Saathi portal (Chakshu facility) also takes complaints.

If money or a code is already gone

1. Contact the voucher company through its official app or website and report the codes quickly, as unused value might be frozen.
2. Call 1930 and report at cybercrime.gov.in with the codes and the chat.
3. Tell your bank if you paid for the vouchers by card or UPI.
4. Do not buy more vouchers to 'recover' the earlier ones.

National Cyber Crime Helpline: 1930; report at cybercrime.gov.in.

Paste the chat into Scam check in Safeavio Sentinel to see the reasons it looks risky, such as secrecy and an unusual payment form. Money Shield lets you keep trusted contacts and a family code word, so a message that claims to be a relative or a boss can be tested with a question only the real person knows. Safeavio cannot cancel a voucher or recover money spent.

Full guide: Gift Card and Recharge Code Payment Scam: how it works, signs and what to do. Other channels: phone call, SMS, email.

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