Ghanaian actress Nadia Buari has urged the public to be cautious after discovering that multiple WhatsApp username variations based on her name had already been claimed.
Sharing her frustration on social media, the actress said she was trying to create a username on the messaging platform but found that every version she attempted was unavailable.
“Ugh, why are people like this???… 😡. I was trying to create this WhatsApp username thing, only to realize every single variation of my name is already gone.
“Every. Single. One. Nadia Buari… Taken. Nadia S Buari… Taken. NSB…. Taken. Even theNadiaBuari—like, seriously?!”
She suggested the usernames may have been taken by impersonators seeking to mislead others.
“It’s exhausting and honestly kind of scary. At this point, it’s clear fraudsters and imposters are lurking everywhere, ready to snatch up anything just to mislead people.
“Please, be careful out there and stay vigilant, because if they’re this quick with usernames, imagine what else they’re up to.”
Buari’s comments come as WhatsApp expands its global rollout of usernames, a feature that allows users to connect using custom handles instead of sharing their phone numbers.
Users can now reserve unique usernames through the mobile app ahead of the feature becoming fully available worldwide.
