WhatsApp & Messenger Scam Warnings for Seniors

Meta Enhances Scam Detection on WhatsApp and Messenger

Meta announced on Tuesday the implementation of new features designed to identify and prevent scams across its messaging platforms, WhatsApp and Messenger. This initiative forms part of a larger effort to combat the increasing prevalence of online fraud, particularly targeting elderly individuals.

The company will now initiate the display of warnings within WhatsApp whenever a user attempts to share their screen during a call. Furthermore, potentially fraudulent messages in Messenger will be flagged and can be submitted for analysis by artificial intelligence.

Disrupting Scam Networks

During the first half of 2025, the technology company reported the detection and disruption of approximately 8 million accounts involved in scam operations. These accounts were linked to scam centers operating in regions such as Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, the United Arab Emirates, and the Philippines.

Meta also took decisive action against over 21,000 Facebook Pages and accounts that were fraudulently impersonating customer support services. These entities aimed to deceive users into divulging personal information.

The prevalence of such deceptive practices is significant, leading many Page administrators to routinely disregard messages claiming to be from customer support. Scam syndicates are increasingly focusing on older adults across diverse sectors, including social media, messaging applications, dating platforms, and cryptocurrency.

New Features in Action

WhatsApp will now present a warning message when a user initiates screen sharing with an unfamiliar contact during a video call. Meta explains that this tactic is frequently employed to extract sensitive data, such as banking credentials and verification codes, from unsuspecting victims.

Concurrently, Messenger is undergoing testing of advanced scam detection methods to assess the legitimacy of incoming messages. If a message is deemed suspicious, a warning will be displayed, advising users to “exercise caution” and highlighting the potential risk of financial loss.

User Guidance and Reporting

The warning screen will also detail common scam strategies, including those related to work-from-home schemes and promises of quick financial gains. Users will be provided with options to either block or report the potentially fraudulent account.

The impact of these scams extends beyond the immediate financial loss to the victim. Personal experiences demonstrate that families often become involved, leading to embarrassment for the victim or resistance to acknowledging the deception.

Vulnerability of Seniors

Scammers frequently utilize social engineering techniques and feigned romantic interest to target individuals with limited online experience or those experiencing early stages of dementia. Loneliness and a desire for companionship are also exploited to manipulate seniors into relinquishing their life savings.

Delayed Response and Future Collaboration

Some critics suggest that Meta should have implemented these protective measures sooner, given the relative simplicity of adding warnings or alerts to the user interface. While the company states it previously introduced context cards, reminders, and warnings regarding shipping scams and instant payments, as well as a WhatsApp safety center, these were not specifically targeted towards the elderly.

Meta has announced its participation in the National Elder Fraud Coordination Center, a recently established nonprofit organization. This center unites law enforcement agencies with companies like AARP, Amazon, Capital One, Google, Microsoft, and Walmart in the collective effort to combat fraud targeting older adults.

This article has been updated to include additional details regarding previous warnings and actions taken by Meta.