Claim: A new scam blocks and hacks an individual’s phone after a call from the number ‘912250041117’ asks the user to press 1 if they are vaccinated.
Fact: The claim appears to be false. In Pakistan, no such number — whether landline or mobile phone — is operational. Numerous international fact-checking organisations have also debunked this claim.
On 28 June 2022, Soch Fact Check received a forwarded chain message on WhatsApp that contains a warning not to fall for a COVID-related scam that blocks and hacks an individual’s mobile phone. According to the message, users receive a call from the number ‘912250041117’, during which they are asked to press 1 if they have been vaccinated; pressing 1 then triggers the hacking and/or blocking of the phone.
The forwarded chain message on WhatsApp is reproduced below:
“Sadly a new scam: Just now my friend received a call from 912250041117 asking him to press 1 if he had vaccinated. He pressed 1. Immediately the phone was blocked 🚫 and his phone has been hacked. So be careful when you get similar calls. Put this in your group chat.”
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check investigated the claim by searching the Internet for any reliable media reports on whether such a scam has affected mobile users at present or in the past but could not find any credible information.
In Pakistan, landline numbers contain eight digits after the city code — for example, 021 3xxxxxxx (Karachi) — and mobile numbers contain seven digits after the mobile network operator code — for example, 0300 xxxxxxx — and not 12 digits as with the number mentioned in the viral message.
Further, we found numerous fact checks — including from signatories of the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN), such as NewsMobile (archived version), Factly (archived version), and NewsMeter (archived version) — that have already debunked this claim.
NewsMeter input the number on global caller identification and call-blocking application TrueCaller and found that it had been reported as a scam more than 21,000 times as of 24 May 2021.
In India, the Press Information Bureau (PIB), Delhi Police’s Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations Unit/Cyber Crime Unit (IFSO/CCU), Telangana State Police, and the Central Bureau of Communication (CBC) in Patna debunked the claim in 2021, clarifying that the message is a hoax.
In Brazil, fact-checking website Boatos.org termed the WhatsApp forwarded chain message to be “vague” and “alarmist”, saying it has “errors in Portuguese” and did not cite any reliable source. The outlet stressed that telephones in the country “have a maximum of 11 digits (nine from cell phone numbers plus two from the area code)” and that “there is no way to have your phone hacked just by pressing a key”.
Authentic sources of information in Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan has introduced various tools for members of the public to obtain authentic information on COVID-19, such as this application for COVID-19, available on both Google Play and App Store, a WhatsApp number to report violations of the COVID-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs), a COVID-19 helpline available in seven languages, and a Facebook Messenger chatbot.
Whatsapp helpline for COVID-19 available in 7 languages
Please send "Hi" to +92-300-111-1166
And get official updates, conduct corona risk assessment and find your nearest lab for testing.#PakistanFightsCorona #DigitalPakistan pic.twitter.com/EAfRHlE0tl
— Ministry of National Health Services, Pakistan (@nhsrcofficial) March 30, 2020
On an international level, Facebook launched a COVID-19 Information Centre for Pakistan, as well as a Messenger Coronavirus Community Hub, while the World Health Organization (WHO) offers a COVID-19 chatbot on WhatsApp in English & Urdu and the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) has a fact-checking chatbot available at +1 (727) 2912606, a fact-checking ecosystem on WhatsApp, and guidelines on how to prevent misinformation.
Virality
Soch Fact Check conducted a CrowdTangle analysis for the 12-month period from 26 July 2021 to 26 July 2022 using the following search terms:
- “So be careful when you get similar calls. Put this in your group chat”
- “Sadly scam friend call vaccinated phone blocked hacked group”
- “tome cuidado ao receber chamadas semelhantes. Coloque isso em seu bate-papo em grupo [be careful when receiving similar calls. Put this in your group chat]”
- “لذا كن حذرًا عندما تتلقى مكالمات مماثلة. كن حذرا. أيضا إبلاغ جميع الاهل وكبار السن. والأصدقاء [So be careful when you get similar calls. Be careful. Also inform all parents and the elderly and friends]”
- “912250041117”
The first and second search terms turned up 72 Facebook posts with 1,074 interactions and 67 Facebook posts with 1,047 interactions, respectively.
The third search term showed 998 interactions across almost 50 posts on Facebook and close to 250 interactions across three Instagram posts, including here, here, and here.
The fourth and fifth search terms turned up 126 Facebook posts with 2,451 interactions and nearly 200 Facebook posts with more than 3,200 interactions, respectively.
The message has surfaced numerous times over the years; on Twitter, it was shared here, here, here, and here in 2022, and here, here, here, here, and here, as well as by two verified accounts, @RealVinduSingh and @kparveen2005, in 2021. On Facebook, it appeared here, here, here, and here, among other posts, in 2022, and here, here, here, and here in 2021.
The message appears to have gone viral not just in Pakistan but also in India, Brazil, Russia and a number of Arabic-speaking countries. The message in question has been reproduced in a number of different languages as follows:
Portuguese: “Atenção Infelizmente, um novo golpe: Agora mesmo, meu amigo recebeu uma ligação de 912250041117 pedindo-lhe para pressionar 1 se ele tivesse se vacinado. Ele pressionou 1. Imediatamente o telefone foi bloqueado e seu telefone foi hackeado. Portanto, tome cuidado ao receber chamadas semelhantes. Coloque isso em seu bate-papo em grupo.”
Arabic: “*للأسف عملية احتيال جديدة:* الآن فقط تلقى صديق مكالمة من 912250041117 يطلب منه الضغط على 1 إذا كان قد حصل على اللقاح. وعندما تم الضغط على( 1) على الفور تم إغلاق الهاتف 🚫 وتم اختراق هاتفه. لذا كن حذرًا عندما تتلقى مكالمات مماثلة. كن حذرا. أيضا إبلاغ جميع الاهل وكبار السن. والأصدقاء… والاحسن لا ترد على اي رقم غريب👍🏻👍🏻”
Hindi: “लोगों के व्हाट्सऐप ग्रुप में एक मैसेज घूम रहा है की ‘912250041117′ से कॉल आती है और अगर आप वैक्सीन लगवा चुके हैं तो ‘1’ का बटन दबाने के लिए कहा जाता है। लेकिन ऐसा करते ही फोन हैक हो जाता है। मैसेज फर्जी हैं। ऐसा कोई नंबर नहीं है। ना ही किसी के पास ऐसे नंबर से कॉल आई है।”
Russian: “К сожалению, новая афера. Только что моему другу позвонили с 912250041117 и попросили нажать 1, если он сделал прививку. Он нажал 1. Сразу же телефон был заблокирован и взломан. Так что будьте осторожны, когда вам будут поступать подобные звонки. Поместите это в свой групповой чат.”
Conclusion: A WhatsApp chain message claims that there is a new scam where an individual’s phone is hacked after receiving a call from the number ‘912250041117’ and being asked to dial 1 if they are vaccinated. The message appears to be a hoax. There is no reliable information that suggests the number is real and/or that dialling 1 after receiving such a call leads to a user’s phone being hacked. In Pakistan, no such number — whether landline or mobile phone — is operational. Numerous international fact-checking organisations have also debunked the claim.