√ How To Spot a Fake Number Plate Using WhatsApp in Zimbabwe

You may be caught up in a situation when you want to know if the number plate of the vehicle which you are looking at is real. You may be suspecting that the occupants of the vehicle are robbers or fraudsters and you are not sure.

I am going to tell you a way that can help you to as an individual or a police officer at a roadblock. This method only works for vehicles registered in Zimbabwe through CVR.

Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only. It should not be used for any evil intentions. It only provides minimum information about the vehicle, therefore it is not 100 per cent reliable in making broad decisions.

What we are going to do is to make use of the Old Mutual Mobile banking WhatsApp number: +263 777 227 227. Save the number in your phone as a contact and say, "hi" to the contact using your WhatsApp. If you do not have a WhatsApp Internet connection or you have kambudzi, you can dial *227#, but unfortunately available to CABS account holders. Many banks have this option.

The WhatsApp method

Say, "Hi" to the contact.
Choose Insurance Services, option 2;
Buy vehicle insurance, option 1;
Buy 3rd part cover, option 1;
Enter your vehicle registration number e.g. (AAA1111);
Select 4 months cover (although any option will do)

Be directed to the WhatsApp

To launch the WhatsApp chat directly, click the numbers below:-
Click: 👉 +263777227227 👈

USSD Method

Dial *227#, on your phone;
Select option 7, Old mutual services;
Select option 1, Buy vehicle insurance.
Follow options 4, 5 and 6 above.

You will be replied with the vehicle Make and Model :

Confirm the following vehicle details

Make: HONDA

Model: FIT
1. Confirm
2. Re-enter car registration number

As you can see here you can view the vehicle Make and Model which we can use to confirm "partially" that the vehicle number plate is fake or not. If you are looking at a Benz and the app results are showing a Honda Fit, ... Call 911.

With this method, we can get 2 things:

To know the make and model of the vehicle by knowing just the plate number. Useful during the night.
To confirm if the number plate is fake or not. Useful for screening robbers, fraudsters and thieves if the make and model do not match the results.

Conclusion

Please note, that this method can cause a problem if the fake number plate is from a vehicle of the same make and model (therefore matching). But at least you have something to fight criminals with. Reliable information can only be obtained from the Central Vehicle Registry provided you have a warrant or you are a police officer.