By Mustapha Lawal
Claim
Mohammed Bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, is sponsoring interested Muslims to the Hajj pilgrimage this year.
Photo Credit: A screenshot of the message/FactCheckAfrica
Verdict
False! Against the claim, Mohammed Bin Salman Free Hajj Sponsorship 2024 is a hoax.
Full Text
A message entitled “Mohammed Bin SalmanHajj 2024 Sponsorship Scheme” states that Hajj sponsorship is available through the Mohammed Bin Salman’s Foundation and is accessible to all Muslims who could not afford the holy journey due to financial setbacks.
FactCheckAfrica monitored that the assertion has been circulated multiple times on WhatsApp and Facebook with a promise of capturing over 750,000 people freely into the scheme, covering their other expenses.
For clarity, Hajj is an annual sacred pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, required of Muslims at least once in their lifetime as it is the fifth pillar of faith in Islam.
The importance of verifying this claim is due to the need to enlighten the general public on fraudulent means like this that can be used to obtain confidential information about them without their notice/consent.
Verification
FactCheckAfrica critically examined the link to check its authenticity, we can confirm from the process that making one eligible for the sponsorship seems suspicious — typical of what most phishing sites used to have.
Firstly, the website asks applicants to supply their details such as name, phone number, email address, and age. After this, they are to indicate whether or not they have a passport before they are required to share the same application link to different Whatsapp groups they belong to, possibly.
After this stage, the user is redirected to the ‘appointment’ page before receiving a confirmation email on completion of the requirement with no details of how to redeem the sponsorship.
When subjected to verification on the WhoIs domain and a phishing link checker, the result showed the website address (URL) to be suspicious as it was registered on 2024-03-21 and expires on 2025-03-21 due to its short lifespan. Moreover, the link does not show any sign of connection with the Mohammed Bin Salman Foundation.
Further checks by FactCheckAfrica reveal the recurrent nature of the claim as it was found to have spread earlier in 2023, a search on the original foundation’s website does not bring up anything related to such sponsorship. Also, we found this report by a local media in Saudi Arabia saying that Saudi authorities have warned worshippers to be wary of online registration scams.
The National Cyber Security Centre or NCSC defines phishing as a method where criminals use deceptive emails, texts, or calls to deceive victims, often directing them to websites aimed at downloading viruses, spreading falsehood to generate traffic or stealing personal information, including bank details.
FactCheckAfrica have published an explainer on how to spot and counter phishing attacks and also did a recent factcheck report on a website that runs fraudulent offers like this.
Conclusion
False! The claim that Mohammed Bin Salman Free Hajj Sponsorship 2024 is a hoax. The website linked to the claim showed phishing characteristics. FactCheckAfrica urges the general public to eschew the link by not applying for it or sharing it.
