If you have the popular messaging platform WhatsApp on your smartphone, chances are you are bombarded with messages and forwards and videos all day. And WhatsApp groups are perhaps the most annoying. Even if you "mute" the group so that you don't have to hear your cellphone beep every five seconds thanks to constant forwards and conversations that sometimes have nothing to do with you (or which make no sense), the downloads still take up precious time, space and even more precious data.
And what about the dubious messages that urge you to act now, the most recent of which
involves an exclusive invite enticing users to upgrade to a premium 'gold' version of the free messaging platform? Claiming to be an elite service with extended features used by celebrities the world over, receivers are asked to click on an embedded link to register for the same.
However, the link takes you to a website showing an 'error 404' message that contains dangerous malware which could allow cyber-criminals access to secure information stored on the device.
Another is medical advice from so-called experts citing, “Do not take medicines twice a day for diabetes. Blood pressure needn’t be treated. Pregnant women shouldn’t consult doctors during their pregnancy, child birth is a natural process that does not need a doctor’s intervention.”
All of these are, of course, fake messages designed for nothing else but mischief. And with only a few social media users actually taking the time to check the genuineness of a message before pressing the share button, the Indian Medical Association has decided to take the legal course to curb such practices.
And what of messages that warn of a "mysterious lady" going from house to house in your particular locality LPG card in one hand, a chloroform-soaked cloth in the other? Or those about kidnappings of kids from the neighbourhood school? Or bomb scares, like the recent one at Mall de Goa in Porvorim? Or “divine” messages that users must share immediately with a specific number of people if they want to be blessed? Or the one that claimed that Kannada had been identified by the Guinness World Records as the oldest living language in the world?
As usual, the best way to avoid getting sucked into a scam is to ignore it and delete any messages which mention it. And the best way to avoid spreading panic and fear? Verify the source and the veracity of the content before you send it out in to the world again, of course!
QUOTES
So how many actually read the forwards or watch the videos? And how many help perpetrate the hoaxes?
I simply ignore all kinds of WhatsApp forwards and delete them. As far as hoax messages that state that WhatsApp will no longer be free are concerned, I ignore them too. Because you can immediately tell that they are fake. Unless and until you watch something on the national/international news channels, you shouldn't believe anything.
Callum Pereira, Hollant
You have an option of disabling auto download in WhatsApp. I also generally clean up my phone storage on a weekly basis. As far as quantity is concerned, I don't get so many that I am unable to read my messages. I also watch most videos before deleting them, but again it depends on my mood. Whenever I receive a forward, I first check if its important enough to be shared. Then I verify by actually checking a news website or even plain ol' Google. Only then do I forward or share.
Samatha Dias, Siolim
