Mark Zuckerberg Deletes 6.8m WhatsApp Accounts Linked to Scam, Rolls out New Preventive Features
- Meta, the parent company of Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, announced new measures to prevent scams
- The company, led by American billionaire Mark Zuckerberg, announced the deletion of 6.8 million WhatsApp accounts linked to scams
- The new measures introduced by Meta will help WhatsApp users detect and avoid falling victim to fraud
Wycliffe Musalia has over six years of experience in financial, business, technology, climate, and health reporting, providing deep insights into Kenyan and global economic trends. He currently works as a business editor at TUKO.co.ke.
American billionaire and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has deleted over 6.8 million WhatsApp accounts related to scams.
Source: Getty Images
Zuckerberg said the move is part of Meta's broader objective to protect users from fraudulent activities.
Why WhatsApp shut down 6.8m accounts
The company also introduced new measures on the messaging app to help users spot scams and keep them safe while chatting.
Meta took the measures following an increase in cases where fraudsters hijack WhatsApp accounts, add users to fake group chats that prompt fake investment schemes.
"In the first six months of this year, as part of our ongoing proactive work to protect people from scams, WhatsApp detected and banned over 6.8 million accounts linked to scam centres.
"Based on our investigative insights into the latest enforcement efforts, we proactively detected and took down accounts before scam centres were able to operationalise them," said Meta in a statement published on August 5, 2025.
The company revealed that the scam centres operate from South East Asian countries.
Which measures has WhatsApp taken to avoid scams?
Source: UGC
Group messaging safety overview
The leading messaging platform introduced an overview of the group a user is added to by someone not in their contact list.
The overview includes key information about the group and tips to stay safe. Using the information, a user can exit the group without ever having to look at the chat, or if it is a recognised group, select the option to see the chat for more context.
The company said notifications from the group will be silenced until you mark that you want to stay.
Individual messaging
WhatsApp said it is exploring ways to caution users when they start a chat with someone not in their contacts by showing them additional context about who they are messaging, to help them make an informed decision.
The messaging app urged users to pause, question, and verify before responding to a suspicious or unusual message, especially if it is from someone not in their contact list.
WhatsApp introduces Ads
The changes came after Meta introduced ads on the messaging platform in June 2025.
The company said the ads will be displayed on the Update tab and will not affect users' chats, but will help channel admins, organisations, and businesses build and grow.
WhatsApp said the Updates tab will bring the change it has anticipated for years to its over 1.5 billion users globally.
The company assured that only users who visit WhatsApp status will experience the change.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
