6 Ways Your WhatsApp Messages Can Be Hacked

In the recent era, the use of WhatsApp has grown significantly, the active users of WhatsApp are around 2 billion with over 30 billion messages sent over a day. The two founders namely Brain Acton and Jan Koum invested their blood, sweat, and tears to make WhatsApp a successful messaging app on the planet. WhatsApp is an easy-to-use messaging app that’s popular and simple to use. It comes with some security features, like end-to-end encryption, designed to keep messages secure. The best part about WhatsApp is that although the company has been around for 10 years, it still maintains its non-ad, no-game, no-gimmick guarantee while making millions in revenue.

To protect its users WhatsApp introduced many features but it’s still not immune to hacks as a result, your message and contact privacy may be compromised.

6 Ways Your WhatsApp Messages Can Be Hacked

1. Remote Code Execution via GIF 

Hackers were able to take control of WhatsApp using a GIF image in October 2019 when security researcher Awakened revealed a GIF vulnerability. To use the hack, users need to open the Gallery View in WhatsApp and send a media file. This hack attempts to take advantage of how WhatsApp processes images. A preview of the GIF is displayed after the app parses the GIF. The GIF format has multiple frames that are encoded. This makes it possible to hide elements of code within an image. Hackers could compromise the chat history of a user by sending them a malicious GIF. A hacker could see who the user had contacted and what they had said. Not only they can read the messages but they can also access your files, photos, and videos through WhatsApp. WhatsApp versions up to 2.19.230 on Android 8.1 and 9 were affected by the vulnerability.

2. Media File Jacking

Both WhatsApp and Telegram are affected by media file jacking. Attackers exploit how apps receive media files such as pictures and videos and write them to the device’s external storage. It begins with the installation of malware hidden within a harmless app. In addition, the malware can monitor incoming Telegram or WhatsApp files. When a new file arrives, the malware may switch out the real file for the fake one. It has been suggested that the issue may be used to scam people or spread fake news by Symantec, the company that discovered it.

3. The Pegasus Voice Call Attack

In 2019 another malicious attack came into existence named the Pegasus voice call attack. This attack is performed when the hacker wants to access a device simply by making WhatsApp voice calls. Now you might think that this attack could be tackled by not picking up the call but that’s not true, the hacker can get access even if there is no response from the user. Through a method called buffer overflow, this was accomplished. It is a deliberate attack where heaps of code are deliberately inserted into a small buffer, causing it to “overflow” and writing code to a location that it shouldn’t be able to access. Hackers were able to collect data from phone calls, messages, photos, and videos thanks to an older piece of spyware called Pegasus. In addition, it enabled them to record with devices’ cameras and microphones. Android, iOS, Windows 10 Mobile, and Tizen devices are affected by this vulnerability.

4. WhatsApp Web 

It has made life easier for a person who spends most of the time on a PC as he/she doesn’t have to pick up their mobile again and again for sake of messaging, they can simply log in to their WhatsApp on their PC. It is also possible to hack into your WhatsApp chats using the web version, despite how handy it is. WhatsApp Web poses this risk when you’re using a computer that belongs to someone else. In this case, even if you close the browser after closing WhatsApp, your account will remain signed in if the computer owner selected the keep me signed-in box during login.

5. Socially Engineered Attacks 

In addition, WhatsApp can be exploited through social engineering attacks, which exploit human psychology to steal information or spread disinformation. This type of attack was exposed by a security firm called Check Point Research, which called it FakesApp. Using this feature, people were able to alter another person’s reply and misuse the quote feature. By planting fake statements that appear to come from other legitimate users, hackers could trick legitimate users. Fraudulent news and scams could be spread using this attack which could harm the sentiments of the public as well.

6. Paid Third-Party Apps

Nowadays many third-party apps attract people so that they can install them. Here the real game starts with hacking the security systems. This attack is used to gather some personal information. Spyzie and mSPY, for example, are capable of spying on your WhatsApp accounts by capturing private data. Users simply need to purchase, install, and activate the application.

Conclusion 

While WhatsApp boasts strong end-to-end encryption, vigilance remains crucial. Be wary of phishing scams, suspicious links, and unverified apps. Two-factor authentication and secure backups add layers of protection. Ultimately, responsible digital habits and awareness of potential threats are your best defense against WhatsApp hacking. Remember, safety is not just a feature, it’s a shared responsibility. The above-mentioned are some of the ways your WhatsApp chats could be hacked. We hope that this article provides you with some information about the various hacks that are being used to access your accounts.