As it happens, a simple missed call on your WhatsApp is enough to infect your smartphone with advanced spying software. WhatsApp has recently stated that it has fixed a vulnerability that would allow the installation of spyware on your smartphone via missed call. The company has also confirmed that only a handful of users had been targeted, so far, by the ‘advanced cyber actor’.
It has been reported that the spyware that attacked WhatsApp users comes from Israel’s NSO group. The NSO Group is known for its software named ‘Pegasus’ that it is selling to governments for hacking smartphones and activating their cameras and mics for the sake of collecting information and even sending out texts and emails. WhatsApp was busy working on finding and then fixing the problem since last week.
However, there is no confirmation as to how many phones were targeted during the hack attack. According to the company, however, the number is at least in dozens. WhatsApp has not named any organization but did say that the attack had all of the markings of a private company that is known to work with governments for infecting phones. According to the security firm that was behind the identification of the flaw in WhatsApp, ‘team was putting some additional security enhancements to our voice calls.’ Its engineers learned that the affected users ’might get one or two calls from a number that is not familiar to them. In the process of calling, this code gets shipped.’
Hackers can target all of the operating systems that are being used on smartphones via this hack. In order to secure your phone, you simply need to update your WhatsApp to the latest version of the app. It is also strongly suggested that you update your phone’s operating system so that you have the latest security patch update. According to a spokesperson for WhatsApp, ‘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.’
