Just recently, I got a scam message in my WhatsApp inbox that almost cost me my account and contacts. How easy it can be for someone to take over your WhatsApp account, made me think for a moment, can WhatsApp actually be hacked?
The messaging platform stands at about 2 billion users worldwide, which, to me is good statistics if I were a cybercriminal looking to employ various hacking techniques. Understanding these techniques and methods could be your only way out.
What Is WhatsApp Hacking?
Like any other form of hacking, WhatsApp hacking is the unauthorized access to someone’s account, enabling the hacker to intercept messages, steal personal information or impersonate the user. It sounds benign but imagine what kind of information someone might get if they actually had access to your WhatsApp messages and contacts.
Common techniques used by hackers to hack WhatsApp
Phishing Attacks: these are especially common around festive seasons and holidays, basically involving deceptive messages that may appear legit, prompting the user to click on the links or provide sensitive information.
The most popular case of this is when a user receives a message claiming they have “won” a prize, urging them to click a link that harvests their data, and then prompt them to share the link to others as a final step to getting what they had won. Most of these appear as promotions from companies for gadgets, data or other items online, sometimes even money.
Verification Code Scams: This is one scam that takes over your entire WhatsApp account and hands it over to your scammer. The attacker attempts to access a user’s WhatsApp by entering the victim’s number on a new device. The victim then receives a verification code via the App or SMS, which the scammer, posing as a friend or official techie from WhatsApp requests under pretext. Unfortunately for the victim, sharing this code grants the hacker access to their account—chats, contacts, and backed-up media.
One viral way of executing this scam passed recently where WhatsApp users “won” scholarship funding from an abroad organization. The attacker continued to tell the victims that they would be enrolled in the university platform, requesting personal information like names, locations, telephone numbers and other related data. Later, they would claim to send you a verification code via your WhatsApp account, which you will have to send back to them for verification.
From there, they attempt to log your number on a new phone, which prompts a code to be sent to you by WhatsApp to verify your switch of phones. You get the WhatsApp verification code, send it to them and then you are locked out of your account…the success rates were astronomical.
Social Engineering: This attack comes down to the manipulation of the victims. Scammers might impersonate trusted contacts or organizations to extract personal details or financial details. This is especially useful after the verification code scam has been successful, as in, they already have your contacts and have access to your previous chats. They can select who is most susceptible to sending you financial help from your close chat interactions and ask for some financial help or pretend they are in a huge problem…
It can even get to threatening, for instance in Peru, where extortionists sent death threats via WhatsApp to coerce individuals into making payments…
Malicious Links and Attachments: Remember the time of computer viruses and corrupt files messing with your system? The truth is, malicious attachments/files and viruses have never been destroyed, it’s just that the tech companies worked better at trying to secure your computer.
For WhatsApp users, this threat is still present as anyone can send you a seemingly harmless APK file, when in actual sense it is going to harvest data from your phone and send it back to the attacker.
A scheme of this nature happened some time back where a link sent via WhatsApp could infect both iPhone and android devices. Dangerous text ‘immediately infects’ iPhone or Android if you click as experts share a list of messages you must delete
With all these risks, how does one safeguard themselves against WhatsApp hacks?
How To Prevent WhatsApp Hacks
There is no sure way to safeguard your device from malicious attacks. Just as new technologies emerge every now and then, so do the techniques and methods of exploiting this software. You can, however, make it harder for hackers to exploit your devices.
Enable Two-step Verifications: This adds an extra layer of security by requiring a six-digit PIN in addition to the regular verification code when registering your account on a new phone, that is when a scammer tries to enter your number in a new phone, and by some tactic manage to get the verification code, they would have to ask for the 6-digit PIN which would alert you of what they are trying to do.
How to activate Two-step verification on WhatsApp;
- Open WhatsApp and navigate to Settings > Account > Two-step verification > Enable/turn on.
- Set a six-digit PIN and provide a valid email address for recovery purposes.
Be cautious of unsolicited Messages: Avoid clicking on links or downloading attachments from unknown or unexpected sources. Even if a message appears to come from a known contact, verify its authenticity through a separate communication channel.
Regularly Verify Security Codes: Each WhatsApp chat has a unique security code. Regularly verifying these codes ensures your conversations remain encrypted and secure. To check:
- Open the chat, tap on the contact’s name, and select “Encryption” to view the unique code.
Keep Your App Updated: Many of us hate updating apps, mostly because they often come unexpectedly and consume some extra data. Not to mention, in most cases, you open the app to chat and thus dismiss the update message.
However, regularly updating your WhatsApp ensures you have the latest version, which usually includes security patches to address known vulnerabilities.
Limit Account Visibility: Adjust your privacy settings to control who can see your immediate personal information. The first thing a hacker looks out for is information on their victims, and what better place to get this than your own profiles? Adjust your privacy settings so that only contacts can view certain aspects of your account… Unless it’s a business account, why should the general public have access to who you are?
- Navigate to Settings > Account > Privacy to manage options like profile photo, status, and last seen.
Log out of WhatsApp web: Some people use WhatsApp’s web interface to text and interact while on their laptops and desktops. However, these are pathways to your account. It is easier to infiltrate your browser sessions than it is to infiltrate your physical phone.
Thus, ensure you log out of WhatsApp web sessions that are not in use, especially on public/shared computers—you might be careful, but you don’t know what the other users do in their internet sessions.
- On your phone, go to Settings > Linked Devices, and log out any active sessions.
Is WhatsApp Really Safe?
While true that WhatsApp uses end-to-end encryption to ensure that only you and the recipient can read the messages, the platform itself isn’t entirely immune to security threats. No platform or system is ever completely secure.
Most of the vulnerabilities often come from user practices rather than the app itself, and thus its security is very well based on the users themselves. Which is probably why you are reading this. By understanding common tricks used by hackers and scammers, you are better equipped to protect your account from simple attacks.
Stay informed, stay cautious, and prioritize your digital details… the internet is vast, and sharing your data can help someone forge an identity somewhere else in the world, and you would know nothing about it.
