WhatsApp Security flaw discovered
A security flaw in the popular messaging app, WhatsApp, has been discovered. The flaw has been used to target numerous people and groups already. It is believed that the vulnerability was discovered and exploited by an Israeli company that designs such "spyware" with the supposed intention of assisting governments and their law agencies.How it works
Attackers would place a WhatsApp call to the intended target. Even if the target did not answer the call, the malicious code would be sent to the phone and the vulnerability exploited. Once the phone has been infected intimate data could be retrieved from the device, even access to the microphone and camera is possible.
WhatsApp engineers have already released an update that fixes the flaw and are urging all users to update their app as soon as possible. It is recommended that you update your mobile operating system as an added precaution.
The flaw exists on all these versions of WhatsApp:
- Android prior to v2.19.134,
- WhatsApp Business for Android prior to v2.19.44,
- WhatsApp for iOS prior to v2.19.51.
- WhatsApp for Windows Phone and Tizen is also affected.
How to update
To update your version of WhatsApp you need to do the following:iOS (Apple)
- Open the App Store,
- Tap the "updates" icon,
- You can either select "Update All" or select WhatsApp on its own and update.
- Note if there is no update for WhatsApp shown, you may already have the latest version automatically
- Open the Google Play Store
- Hit the menu icon,
- Select "My Apps & Games" then tap update.
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