A message on Facebook claiming that WhatsApp will begin charging users for its services unless they forward a particular text to 20 people has been confirmed as FAKE.
Pesacheck looked into the claim and found it to be false.
WhatsApp has not announced any plans to charge users for its services as claimed in the message shared on Facebook.
The warning is purportedly issued by Varun Pulyani and Jim Balsamic. The two claim to be the director and CEO of WhatsApp respectively.
The chief executive officer at WhatsApp Inc is Will Cathcart and not Jim Balsamic as claimed. WhatsApp was founded by Jan Koum and Brian Acton, according to its website.
The message further announced that WhatsApp has been sold to Mark Zuckerberg for $19 billion, even though the Facebook founder bought the messaging platform in 2014.
“WhatsApp is now controlled by Mark Zuckerberg. If you have at least 20 contacts, send this SMS and your WhatsApp logo will change to a new icon with the “f” of Facebook within 24 hours," the message claimed.
It added, "Forward this message to more than 10 people to activate your new WhatsApp with Facebook services or your account will be deleted from the new servers.”
Users were warned that if they failed to share the message as instructed, their accounts will be deactivated and will only be restored after paying a monthly bill of $25.
Such changes are bound to happen through a software update but the latest version of the update does not include the pay-to-use model.
The post has been shared from several Facebook profiles and pages and has been viral over the past few days.
Whatsapp has also not given any update on the same through its social media pages on Facebook and Twitter.
While WhatsApp did have a pay-to-use model, it suspended its subscription fees in 2016.
In 2012, the company put out a statement dismissing claims that it was set to be a pay-to-use service, indicating that the hoax has been around for almost a decade. “Please understand that this is a hoax and there is no truth to it,” WhatsApp said in a statement.
PesaCheck has looked into the message claiming that WhatsApp is set to charge users for its services and finds it to be a HOAX.
