WhatsApp users warned over 'friends and family' scam as fraudsters steal thousands

WhatsApp users are being warned about a common scam that could leave them seriously out of pocket.

The latest alert comes from Action Fraud, which is urging people to be on the lookout for the infamous friends and family scam.

It’s a tactic that has been used for a number of years by cyber crooks, but it remains a dangerous threat that still catches many people out.

If you’ve not heard of this trick before, then let us explain. It all starts with a simple message claiming to be from a friend or family member saying they are in trouble and in urgent need of help.

The chats often start with the phrase "Hi mum" with the scammers then asking for money to be transferred to an online account.

It might seem like something most people wouldn’t fall for, but millions of pounds have been lost to these kinds of attacks over the past few years with some WhatsApp users handing over thousands before they realises anything is wrong.

Now, Action Fraud says it’s a good time to remind yourself of the dangers of online messages and to be on high alert.

The team also says it’s vital to know how to report any activity on accounts and to ‘follow the instructions’ issued by WhatsApp.

"If a family member or friend makes an unusual request on WhatsApp, always call the person outside of WhatsApp to confirm their identity.

"Report spam messages or block a sender within WhatsApp. Press and hold on the message bubble, select ‘Report’ and then follow the instructions.

"If you lost money as a result of the scam message, please report it to Action Fraud."

Here's how to block contact and report things to stop more people from becoming victims.

To block a contact simply go to chats and tap and hold on the person you want to block. A list should then appear including the option to "Block" the contact.

Tap on this and you'll see the option to "Block and Report" tap this and you will no longer gets messages from that contact.