In October 2025, warnings resurfaced on social media regarding a long-running WhatsApp Gold scam, a scheme using fraudulent messages to deceive users into downloading malware by promising access to a non-existent, premium version of the messaging application.
Multiple Facebook users shared alerts describing the supposed “WhatsApp Gold” update as a scam designed to install malicious software on phones and compromise personal data. The posts urged people not to engage with text messages promoting the alleged premium service. One user cited a radio warning, calling the update a “long-running scam and hoax, not an official update from WhatsApp.” According to that post, messages promoting the scam falsely promised “exclusive features” like video calls, new emojis, or customized chat colors. Some users also connected the scam to a separate hoax involving a video called “Martinelli,” rumored to hack phones if opened.
The messages advising caution were confirmed as legitimate. WhatsApp does not offer a premium version of its app called “WhatsApp Gold,” and such promotional messages are likely attempts to steal personal information or infect devices with malware. This particular hoax has a long history, with versions tricking people for nearly a decade. Scammers first successfully duped WhatsApp users into downloading the malicious update in 2016, according to multiple news outlets. The Independent reported in May 2016 that users who fell for the scam had their devices infected with malware instead of receiving an enhanced app.
Reinforcing the fraudulent nature of the offer, WhatsApp provided an official statement via email to Snopes. The company stated, “No, WhatsApp does not offer things like WA Gold or WA Plus. This is a hoax that has again resurfaced. We strongly encourage people to only use the official WhatsApp app. We don’t support unofficial clients — which could use many different names — because they carry real security or privacy risks to the people they trick into downloading them.
