Update WhatsApp on your iPhone, Android or Windows device and avoid to be a target of cybercriminals.
2 min read
Users are being advised to update their WhatsApp Android and iPhone apps quickly because of a security bug. If they don’t do the necessary update there is a possibility to become victims of cybercriminals.
The bug allows these idiots to take over your phone by calling you. And moreover, they are not amateurs, it isn’t necessary to answer the call. They will control your phone!
A bug in this messaging service allowed hackers to install spyware through the voice call.
The spyware is able to trawl within calls, texts, and all your data. As we said, those hackers are not amateurs.
How to update your WhatsApp
To update your WhatsApp, you have to go to the Google Play store on your Android. If you are using an iPhone go to App Store, or Galaxy app store on Tizen devices.
If the update hasn’t automatically done, you will notice a possibility to install the latest version of WhatsApp.
And don’t you think you are safe.
All phones with WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business installed are the potential target.
According to Facebook to whom this app belongs, this new update is necessary for all: iPhone, Windows, Android as well as for Tizen.
Also, according to Facebook, WhatsApp has 1.5 billion users globally.
Who are attackers?
According to the Financial Times, behind this new cyber attack is an Israeli cyber intelligence company NSO Group.
These artists developed the spyware. It is a private company working on surveillance.
Who and how many people are spied on is not yet identified. For now, several targets are known. A UK-based human rights lawyer and an Amnesty International researcher, have been identified as victims.
What can you do?
If you didn’t have any WhatsApp voice calls from the unknown user, you can be quite sure that you have probably not been targeted.
But if you work in delicate fields and use WhatsApp, even only for private communication, you should be exceptionally careful.
Users did not have to accept the call, the malware-infected their phones and all data was on the plate for those criminals.
So, just update your WhatsApp and have a hope that you have prevented the attackers and your device is secured.
Or uninstall WhatsApp from your phone to protect you from the attack.
Meanwhile, Facebook installed a server-side change.
This is supposed to protect users and launched updates for the various smartphone WhatsApp versions.
Users are fully advised to check for updates manually as we described above.
On nsogroup.com, its official website we found they are “helping governments maintain public safety”.
“Our products help government intelligence and law-enforcement agencies use technology to meet the challenges of encryption to prevent and investigate terror and crime.”
Of course, they wouldn’t reveal they are targeting private, innocent citizens.
So, maybe this company just doesn’t have enough customers and this was the way to put itself in the center of global attention.
Nevertheless, they did it in an, at least, irregular and against all laws manner.
Of course, if this company is behind these new attacks.
The first suspected
WhatsApp identified the vulnerability at the beginning of May.
A WhatsApp spokesman said the attack was sophisticated and had all the signs of a “private company working with governments on surveillance.”
“WhatsApp encourages people to upgrade to the latest version of our app, as well as keep their mobile operating system up to date, to protect against potential targeted exploits designed to compromise information stored on mobile devices,” a spokesman said.
Cyber-security experts announced the majority of users were not affected since this looks like a targeting specific people.
Essentially human rights activists were targeted, as we understood.
Social media titan Facebook bought WhatsApp in 2014 for $19 billion.
Facebook’s shares were up 0.8% at $183.02 in pre-market trading.
