In a sobering tweet, Zerodha co-founder Nithin Kamath sounded the alarm on the growing wave of online scams, which have reportedly cost Indians ₹11,000 crores in just the past nine months. Kamath expressed concern about the potential for artificial intelligence (AI) to amplify these scams, urging users to take preventative steps to safeguard their personal information.
“The trend of these frauds are increasing. The past 9 months alone have had scams worth ₹11,000 crores! I dread to think what it will be like once the fraudsters use AI,” Kamath tweeted, expressing worry about the evolving tactics employed by cybercriminals.
Kamath offered actionable advice for users to protect themselves, particularly on platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram. He recommended updating privacy settings to prevent strangers from adding users to potentially malicious groups. Sharing screenshots, he demonstrated how to adjust these settings, which can be accessed under the privacy options on both messaging apps.
Steps to Update WhatsApp Group Privacy Settings
1. Access Settings • Open WhatsApp and navigate to the Settings tab (accessible via the gear icon in the bottom-right corner). 2. Go to Privacy • Within Settings, select the Privacy option. 3. Adjust Group Settings • Under Privacy, locate the Groups setting and tap on it. 4. Change Who Can Add You to Groups • You’ll see three options: • Everyone: Anyone can add you to a group. • My Contacts: Only people saved in your contacts can add you to a group. • My Contacts Except…: Select specific contacts who cannot add you to groups. • Choose either My Contacts or My Contacts Except… for enhanced privacy. 5. Save Changes • Once selected, exit the settings, and your preferences will be updated.