Skip to main content

The instant messaging app Facebook Messenger, you can now warn users when suspicious messages are received from non-contacts, and also when someone tries to impersonate a Facebook friend.

Warning messages for possible scams

Every day thousands of people are victims of scams by Facebook Messenger, and there are many methods for this, so Facebook Messenger decided to take action on the matter, and include a new feature that alert people when suspicious messages are received.

The social network is launching a new feature for Messenger, which will show a pop-up window in the application, when a person receives a message from someone who could be trying to scam them or send "potentially harmful" messages.

The application will search for potentially suspicious messages from strangers, […] warning users to "beware of money claims" when they receive a message from someone who is not yet among their friends.

facebook-messenger2-2912676

Likewise, Facebook Messenger will also warn about identity theft cases:

The app will also search for messages that come from accounts that may be trying to pose as a Facebook friend. When Messenger detects that this could be happening, it will warn users that the person they are messaging may be pretending to be someone they know.

Facebook Messenger will also warn minors

Not all scams on Facebook are directly related to money, many of these have darker purposes, such as the sexual exploitation of minors, and Facebook Messenger will now also alert minors to this threat:

For minors, Facebook will show the warning when they receive a message from an adult they don't know. The alert "educates people under 18 to be cautious when interacting with an adult they may not know and empowers them to take action before responding to a message."

It is important to note that the messages are currently encrypted, but end-to-end encryption is not used (except for secret conversations), which means that Facebook Messenger has the ability to scan the content of conversations to warn users against scams and scams.

However, in anticipation of the adoption of end-to-end encryption as a standard for instant messaging, the company plans to use other "signals" to warn its users, especially in the area of child protection, as you have done previously.

R Marketing Digital