The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is investigating a spike in scam robocalls that urge people to “add me on WhatsApp,” often linked to an apparent recruitment or part-time work offer. The regulator says it received more than 3,600 complaints in September, the highest rate in five years, and believes the figure may represent only a small fraction of the actual volume of calls.

The ICO says it is working to identify who is behind the calls, why they are being made, and what impact they have on members of the public. In guidance, Ofcom warns that the calls are designed to get recipients to call back the scammer’s number, potentially leading to pressure for personal information or payments to accounts controlled by criminals, and may also result in costly premium-rate charges. Ofcom adds that scammers are likely operating abroad and spoofing UK numbers to appear legitimate.

Outlets report that the scam calls have increased in frequency. The common advice across reporting is to hang up, not share personal details, and report suspicious calls to 7726.