A scam targeting citizens during the Independence Day celebrations has come to light, with fake SMS and WhatsApp messages circulating in Pakistan claiming that Rs. 13,000 cash was being offered to citizens as part of Independence Day celebrations. The National Cyber Emergency Response Team (National CERT) has issued an advisory after the fraudulent messages were reported.

According to the National CERT, the messages contained potentially malicious or fraudulent links that could be used to steal personal or financial information. The scam messages were designed to attract recipients through the promise of Rs. 13,000 cash and could put users at risk if they clicked on the links or provided sensitive information.

The National CERT has advised citizens not to click on suspicious links received through SMS or WhatsApp and not to share personal or financial information in response to such messages. Citizens have also been directed not to respond to or forward the fraudulent messages and to delete, block and report them.

The cyber security team has urged citizens to verify suspicious URLs before clicking on them through the National CERT’s Phish-Radar platform. The platform can be used to check potentially malicious or suspicious links and is available at pkcert-phish-radar.logiqcurve.com.

The National CERT has urged citizens to remain vigilant against such messages and verify the authenticity of cash offers, links and online claims before sharing personal or financial information.