WhatsApp and Messenger add scam warnings — built for older, less-techy users

Meta has introduced new security nudges inside both WhatsApp and Messenger designed to protect older people — a demographic disproportionately targeted by online fraud — at the precise moment they are most vulnerable. Rather than burying safety advice in help pages or blog posts, the company is now putting friction and caution in the flow of conversation itself.

On WhatsApp, a bright, interruptive warning now appears when a user attempts to share their screen with someone who is not in their contacts or has a thin chat history — a pattern common to fraud calls posing as “bank support” or “account verification”. Screen-sharing has become one of the most effective vectors for draining accounts: scammers walk victims through “fixes” while quietly watching them open mail, passwords, or banking apps.

Messenger’s update works differently. An AI model scans for markers common to scam lures — high-pressure payment language, unsolicited “tech support” outreach, too-good-to-be-true investment returns — and overlays a warning advising the user they “may be at risk of losing money” before they reply or tap any links. Options to block, report, or escalate appear in-line.

Meta says scams exploiting older people have surged, and that it disrupted millions of fraud-linked accounts in 2025 alone. The company argues that passive education does not work at scale — what does change behaviour is a hard stop at the critical moment of risk.

The move reflects a broader shift in online safety: treat scams like a UX problem, not just a policing problem. Researchers have long argued that seniors and less-tech-confident users don’t fail because they don’t know scams exist — they fail because the alert arrives after they have already acted. Meta’s redesign attempts to intercept the action, not merely explain the risk.

The company admits limitations: warning fatigue is real, detection is not perfect, and incentives for scammers remain high. Some features will also roll out in phases depending on market, regulation and language support.

Even so, the policy signal is clear: the era of “tell people to be careful” is being replaced by “constrain the moment of failure”. For older users — and for families who often act as their informal IT support — these real-time, in-context brakes may prove more impactful than any awareness campaign to date.