An ‘acquaintance’ is in need and cannot reach his money. Are you booking something over?
‘Whaling’ is the English word for whaling and it is used for the following phenomenon: a so-called acquaintance contacts you because he or she is in need and can no longer access his money. Or maybe you can transfer money to an account that he can still access. According to the message, the money lent will be transferred back to you as soon as possible. But you will never see the money again, because the real acquaintance of yours knows nothing; it’s a scam. The scammer has taken a lot of loot.
This type of fraud is not new. But what you may not know is that you can receive a message from the fraudsters not only by email, but also via social media such as Facebook and even WhatsApp.
How is whaling possible?
How to receive such messages from scammers? For example, because your friend’s email or Facebook account has been taken over by hackers. The message is actually sent to you from his or her account. A new account may also have been created with, for example, your friend’s photo and information. If it concerns a Facebook account, in this case you will first receive a friend request. If you are already friends on Facebook, you can ignore this request right away. In the case of WhatsApp, your phone number or your friend’s contact list has fallen into the hands of fraudsters and you are being contacted by an unknown phone number.
How do you recognize whaling?
The messages are often written in bad Dutch. Of course, that does not mean that an error-free message is reliable. Your gut feeling probably tells you already. Are you really the first person to consult the acquaintance for this? And wouldn’t he do that in a different way? Do you recognize the language?
What to do when whaling?
You should of course not transfer money indiscriminately. If you have any doubts about the authenticity of the message, get to the bottom of it. In case of WhatsApp message, you can call the unknown number. You will find out soon enough whether you have your friend on the line or not. You can also contact the person you know directly. Do this in person, for example via the telephone number you have for him. Don’t have a phone number? Then there is little chance that this person will ask you to lend money.