Beware! WhatsApp Gold feature is just a hoax

Don’t download WhatsApp Gold, as it’s a scam; here’s what you need to do

Look who’s back – the WhatsApp Gold feature – that had become viral in 2016. This feature tricked users into downloading ‘WhatsApp Gold’, an apparently ‘exclusive’ version of the app, on their smartphones which was actually a malware through a given link. Apparently, the WhatsApp Gold scam has resurfaced and started circulating on the internet.

While the original scam fooled users to install malware in the form of ‘WhatsApp Gold’, the new scam is in the form of a message warning users about a virus. The said video “Martinelli” will reportedly install malware in the user’s phone and hack it within 10 seconds of viewing the downloaded video.

The hoax message shared by WhatsApp users read, “Today the radio was talking about WhatsApp Gold and it is true. There is a video that will be released tomorrow on WhatsApp and is called Martinelli. Do not open it. Enter your phone and nothing you do will fix it. Spread the message if you know someone. If you receive a message to update Whatsapp Gold Do not open it! They just announced that the virus is serious. Send it to everyone.”

The message also warns users about a real WhatsApp Gold scam in order to make the message more genuine. However, nothing such as ‘Martinelli’ video exists, nor does the message have any download link to malicious sites. Although there were cases of the WhatsApp Gold scam, the Martinelli video is purely a hoax.

It is important to note that WhatsApp Plus and WhatsApp Gold are not applications developed by WhatsApp. Also, WhatsApp installs updates automatically through the app itself and not through download links. Hence, if users are receiving requests to manually install an update, it is suggested to ignore and delete such messages immediately.

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