Claim: A WhatsApp message claiming that the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia would sponsor over 400,000 persons for the 2023 Hajj.
Verdict: The message is false and a phishing scheme that steals victim’s data which can be sold.
Full Text
A message is being shared on different WhatsApp groups urging individuals to apply for a sponsored hajj.
The message claimed that sponsorship is from the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud.
The message read “Hajj! HAJJ!! HAJJ!!! EVERY ONE CAN APPLY FOR 2023 FREE SPONSORSHIP HAJJ SCHEME. MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN is providing Over 400 Thousand Hajj Slot for everyone willing to do this year hajj without paying money. It is no longer news. APPLY NOW”
Verification
The message, which has a link to a website where interested persons can apply, is a phishing scheme where scammers steal personal information of victims who fill the data they ask for.
A visit to the website, https://shtnar.com/hajj-2023-scheme, indicated that personal information, like name, age, email, phone number, occupation, country among others, were asked in the opening page before a visitor is redirected to another page when ‘submit’ is clicked.
The page contains a picture of the crown prince while a couple of testimonials, that are comments, were posted on it.
An icon with the word ‘continue’ was placed in the middle of the page and when clicked, it will ask for the full name of the visitor as well as whether the person has an international passport.
Another icon ‘send’ is clicked upon which pop up with the message; “You are qualified to Apply for MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN HAJJ SPONSORSHIP SCHEME 2023. How to proceed: Share it with 5 groups or 15 friends on Whatsapp (Click on the “SHARE” icon below). You will be redirected automatically to our “APPOINTMENT” page after the GREEN verification bar is filled. You will receive a confirmation Email Within 24hours After Successful Application.”
What is phishing
Phishing is a form of scam where an individual appears as a trusted entity or person in email or other forms of communication.
Perpetrators often use emails to distribute malicious contents like links or attachments with the aim of gaining access to your device which can be in the form of extracting your login credentials or account information.
Having this in mind, when the next information is sent to your email and you download it, the scammers can gain full access to all your information including passwords to the email and other social logins.
Also, you can be called through your phone number while they disguise as your bank representative to gain access to your bank account.
In Nigeria, the phone scamming is the most widespread which scammers have used to withdraw money from the bank account of their victims.
Hidden identity
An analysis was run on the website using some Open-Source Intelligence Tools (OSINT) and it was confirmed that the website is not a trusted one.
A review of the website on Scamadviser, a tool that grades websites on their originality, gave the website one score over hundred.
It stated that this is due to the website not having many visitors with several negative reviews found on it. Similarly, it said the website has only been registered recently.
Also, a check on Whois, a tool that provides information on domain names, stated that the link was created last month in Toronto, Canada and it is hosted on a private server.
Does Saudi Arabia offer free Hajj
Hajj is the holy pilgrimage that Muslims engage in during the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar and the exercise is among the five pillars of Islam.
Slots for the exercise are regulated by Saudi Arabia since the pilgrimage occurs in the country. Countries with a large Muslim population are given a certain number of slots through their regulatory agencies through which individuals apply, depending on the laws in the country.
Though Saudi Arabia grants free hajj through its embassies in other countries, who are referred to as the guest of the king, it is done through a rigorous process and not by online application.
The total pilgrims expected for the 2023 Hajj is 2m, thus, it will be impossible for the country to give 400,000 persons free hajj, which will be of a huge cost to the country.
This Fact Check is produced in partnership with the Centre for Democracy and Development CDD
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