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- WhatsApp tests on-device warnings for suspected scam messages
Its a response to the growing number of scams using the messaging platform By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs August 14, 2026 WhatsApp is testing an optional Scam Alert that uses on-device machine learning to identify suspicious messages from unknown senders.Potential scams will trigger a private warning, but WhatsApp will neither block the message nor automatically report the conversation.The limited beta cannot detect every threat, particularly scams sent through a known contacts compromised account.WhatsApp is testing a new feature designed to warn users when a message from an unknown sender appears to be part of a scam.The optional feature, called Scam Alert, downloads a machine-learning model to the users device. It analyzes incoming messages from people outside the recipients contacts, looking for linguistic signals and conversational patterns associated with scams that have been previously reported by WhatsApp users.When the system identifies a potentially fraudulent message, it displays a warning banner inside the chat. The alert is visible only to the recipient, preventing the suspected scammer from knowing that the message has been flagged.Users can then block the sender, report the conversation, continue chatting or mark the sender as trusted. Choosing the last option removes the warning and stops the feature from flagging that particular conversation again.Privacy protectionScam Alert does not automatically block messages or report their senders. Classification takes place locally on the users device, an approach intended to add protection without requiring WhatsApp to examine private conversations on its servers.The feature is aimed at scams involving impersonation, fake job or sales offers, investment fraud, romance schemes, malicious links, and fraudulent payment requests. Such schemes may begin on Facebook, Instagram, or another public platform before the criminal moves the target to a private WhatsApp conversation.Scam Alert nevertheless has a significant limitation: it focuses on messages from unknown senders. A scam delivered through a friends or relatives compromised account may therefore escape detection because the sender is already listed in the victims contacts.What to watch out forUsers should remain cautious about unexpected links and requests to transfer money, scan QR codes, or connect new devices even when a message appears to come from someone they know. WhatsApp users can also enable two-step verification and review the devices connected to their accounts under Settings > Linked devices.The feature is undergoing a limited beta rollout and is being tested with researchers in Metas bug-bounty community. WhatsApp has not announced when it will become… [TheTopNews] Read More.17 hours ago - Mortgage rates dip for the first time in six weeksBut affordability remains strained By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs August 14, 2026 The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate slipped to 6.67% this week, its first decline in six weeks, but remained above 6.58% a year earlier.High borrowing costs and record prices pushed existing-home sales down 1.7% in July, while first-time buyers continued to lose ground.Buyers are gaining negotiating power in some markets as listings and price reductions increase, but affordability remains the central obstacle.Mortgage rates edge lower, but the housing market remains stuck in an affordability squeezeThe average U.S. mortgage rate declined slightly this week, offering prospective homebuyers a measure of relief but little immediate escape from the affordability pressures weighing on the housing market.The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 6.67% as of Aug. 13, down from 6.69% the previous week, according to Freddie Macs Primary Mortgage Market Survey. It was the first weekly decline in six weeks, although the rate remained higher than the 6.58% average recorded a year ago.The average 15-year fixed rate also fell, to 5.96% from 6.01%. A year earlier, it averaged 5.71%.Better than a year agoFreddie Mac said housing affordability had improved from a year ago and noted that recent increases in purchase and refinancing applications showed borrowers responding to even modest changes in rates. Mortgage applications rose 3.6% in the first week of August, including a 3% increase in purchase applications and a 5% rise in refinancing demand, according to Mortgage Bankers Association data.Still, the latest decline is too small to change the financial equation substantially for most households. A buyer borrowing $400,000 at 6.67% would face a monthly principal-and-interest payment of about $2,574. That excludes property taxes, insurance, homeowners association fees, and other ownership expenses.Rates also remain far above the exceptionally low levels available during the pandemic. Many current homeowners have mortgages below 4%, creating a lock-in effect that discourages them from selling and taking out a new, substantially more expensive loan.Expensive combinationThe combination of elevated rates and high prices is keeping the market unusually sluggish. Sales of previously occupied homes declined 1.7% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.06 million, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales were nevertheless 0.7% higher than a year earlier.The national median existing-home price rose 2% from a year ago to $434,100, setting a record for July. The market had 1.54 million unsold homes at the end of… [TheTopNews] Read More.17 hours ago
- The Molotovs headline King’s Cross Summer Sounds opening night
The Molotovs kicked off London’s King’s Cross Summer Sounds 2026 on Thursday 13 August with an explosive headline set at Coal Drops Yard. [TheTopNews] Read More.17 hours ago - Phoebe Bridgers explains why Lost Weekend took ‘forever’ to makePhoebe Bridgers has discussed the creative process behind her new album, Lost Weekend. [TheTopNews] Read More.18 hours ago
- Becky G’s new album ‘marries’ both sides of her personalityBecky G has teased her new album, describing it as "sensual" and "vulnerable". [TheTopNews] Read More.18 hours ago
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Its a response to the growing number of scams using the messaging platform By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs August 14, 2026 WhatsApp is testing an optional Scam Alert that uses on-device machine learning to identify suspicious messages from unknown senders.Potential scams will trigger a private warning, but WhatsApp will neither block the message nor automatically report the conversation.The limited beta cannot detect every threat, particularly scams sent through a known contacts compromised account.WhatsApp is testing a new feature designed to warn users when a message from an unknown sender appears to be part of a scam.The optional feature, called Scam Alert, downloads a machine-learning model to the users device. It analyzes incoming messages from people outside the recipients contacts, looking for linguistic signals and conversational patterns associated with scams that have been previously reported by WhatsApp users.When the system identifies a potentially fraudulent message, it displays a warning banner inside the chat. The alert is visible only to the recipient, preventing the suspected scammer from knowing that the message has been flagged.Users can then block the sender, report the conversation, continue chatting or mark the sender as trusted. Choosing the last option removes the warning and stops the feature from flagging that particular conversation again.Privacy protectionScam Alert does not automatically block messages or report their senders. Classification takes place locally on the users device, an approach intended to add protection without requiring WhatsApp to examine private conversations on its servers.The feature is aimed at scams involving impersonation, fake job or sales offers, investment fraud, romance schemes, malicious links, and fraudulent payment requests. Such schemes may begin on Facebook, Instagram, or another public platform before the criminal moves the target to a private WhatsApp conversation.Scam Alert nevertheless has a significant limitation: it focuses on messages from unknown senders. A scam delivered through a friends or relatives compromised account may therefore escape detection because the sender is already listed in the victims contacts.What to watch out forUsers should remain cautious about unexpected links and requests to transfer money, scan QR codes, or connect new devices even when a message appears to come from someone they know. WhatsApp users can also enable two-step verification and review the devices connected to their accounts under Settings > Linked devices.The feature is undergoing a limited beta rollout and is being tested with researchers in Metas bug-bounty community. WhatsApp has not announced when it will become… [TheTopNews] Read More.
17 hours ago
But affordability remains strained By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs August 14, 2026 The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate slipped to 6.67% this week, its first decline in six weeks, but remained above 6.58% a year earlier.High borrowing costs and record prices pushed existing-home sales down 1.7% in July, while first-time buyers continued to lose ground.Buyers are gaining negotiating power in some markets as listings and price reductions increase, but affordability remains the central obstacle.Mortgage rates edge lower, but the housing market remains stuck in an affordability squeezeThe average U.S. mortgage rate declined slightly this week, offering prospective homebuyers a measure of relief but little immediate escape from the affordability pressures weighing on the housing market.The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 6.67% as of Aug. 13, down from 6.69% the previous week, according to Freddie Macs Primary Mortgage Market Survey. It was the first weekly decline in six weeks, although the rate remained higher than the 6.58% average recorded a year ago.The average 15-year fixed rate also fell, to 5.96% from 6.01%. A year earlier, it averaged 5.71%.Better than a year agoFreddie Mac said housing affordability had improved from a year ago and noted that recent increases in purchase and refinancing applications showed borrowers responding to even modest changes in rates. Mortgage applications rose 3.6% in the first week of August, including a 3% increase in purchase applications and a 5% rise in refinancing demand, according to Mortgage Bankers Association data.Still, the latest decline is too small to change the financial equation substantially for most households. A buyer borrowing $400,000 at 6.67% would face a monthly principal-and-interest payment of about $2,574. That excludes property taxes, insurance, homeowners association fees, and other ownership expenses.Rates also remain far above the exceptionally low levels available during the pandemic. Many current homeowners have mortgages below 4%, creating a lock-in effect that discourages them from selling and taking out a new, substantially more expensive loan.Expensive combinationThe combination of elevated rates and high prices is keeping the market unusually sluggish. Sales of previously occupied homes declined 1.7% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.06 million, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales were nevertheless 0.7% higher than a year earlier.The national median existing-home price rose 2% from a year ago to $434,100, setting a record for July. The market had 1.54 million unsold homes at the end of… [TheTopNews] Read More.
17 hours ago
The Molotovs kicked off London’s King’s Cross Summer Sounds 2026 on Thursday 13 August with an explosive headline set at Coal Drops Yard. [TheTopNews] Read More.
17 hours ago
Phoebe Bridgers has discussed the creative process behind her new album, Lost Weekend. [TheTopNews] Read More.
18 hours ago
Becky G has teased her new album, describing it as "sensual" and "vulnerable". [TheTopNews] Read More.
18 hours ago
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