Washington, DC [US], January 14 : East Turkistan Government in Exile Foreign and Security Minister, Salih Hudayar, has issued an urgent warning on social media platform X regarding a phishing scam targeting Uyghurs in the United States and Canada. Hudayar revealed that dozens of Uyghurs, over the past few days, have received suspicious WhatsApp calls from a Canadian number.
The caller, who identifies as "Dr Muhammad," falsely claims to represent an East Turkistan group, sometimes even stating he is from the East Turkistan Government in Exile. He invites recipients to a meeting and requests a code, claiming the recipient must send it to be included in the gathering. This behavior, according to Hudayar, is part of a broader phishing campaign that could potentially be linked to a hacking operation aimed at the Uyghur diaspora.
The East Turkistan Government in Exile suspects that these efforts are being orchestrated by Chinese intelligence and their partners. The purpose of the operation appears to be to gain unauthorised access to Uyghurs' devices or accounts, steal sensitive data, and monitor private communications.
Hudayar noted a concerning pattern among the targets, with many of them having been previously added to a Uyghur WhatsApp group called "Tirilish," reportedly managed by individuals in Canada and Turkiye. Additionally, several recipients of these calls reported that the caller spoke with a Pakistani or South Asian accent, raising further suspicion about the source of the scam.
Hudayar's warning emphasised key security precautions for the community. He advised against answering calls or responding to messages from unknown numbers, particularly the suspicious Canadian number. He also urged recipients not to share any codes or click on links sent by strangers.
Hudayar called on Canadian, US and international authorities, including the FBI, CSIS, and CISA, to investigate this phishing campaign and take action to protect Uyghur individuals from these targeted efforts. Hudayar concluded by encouraging the community to remain vigilant and share the warning to safeguard their personal security.
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