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[br][br]WhatsApp users, here's not-so-good news for you. An Israeli company has been able to intercept conversations made on WhatsApp. The security breach allowed third-party to install spyware on WhatsApp users devices. WhatsApp has confirmed the vulnerability, which was first reported Financial Times. The messaging giant, however, did not specifically reveal who is after the attack. Here's all you need to know about this latest security bug in WhatsApp and what users need to do.[br][br]WhatsApp exploited to inject spyware[br][br]An Israel-based company reportedly has been able to successfully install malware that could have been used for tapping phone calls made over WhatsApp.[br][br]According to Financial Times report, Israel-based NSO group is behind the spyware WhatsApp, however, has not revealed who is behind the attack.[br][br]How the malicious code was installed[br][br]Hackers could transmit the malicious code to a device by calling the user. The spyware was installed even if the call went unanswered.[br][br]What about call logs?[br][br]Logs of the incoming calls were reportedly often erased, leaving no trace for the user.[br][br]The security loophole affects iPhones as well as Android smartphones[br][br]iOS and Android versions affected[br][br]The issue affects WhatsApp for Android prior to v2.19.134, WhatsApp Business for Android prior to v2.19.44, WhatsApp for iOS prior to v2.19.51, WhatsApp Business for iOS prior to v2.19.51, WhatsApp for Windows Phone prior to v2.18.348, and WhatsApp for Tizen prior to v2.18.15.[br][br]Number of users affected worldwide is not known so far[br][br]The Facebook-owned company is so far unsure about the number of users that have been affected by this spyware. WhatsApp has approximately 1.5 billion users globally.[br][br]WhatsApp issued a patch for the security loophole on Monday (May 13)[br][br]WhatsApp's message to users worldwide: Update your app right away[br][br]“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,” said WhatsApp in a statement.[br][br]How spyware was installed[br][br]According to WhatsApp: A buffer overflow vulnerability in WhatsApp VOIP stack allowed remote code execution via specially crafted series of SRTCP packets sent to a target phone number.[br][br]What makes the security loophole big[br][br]The hackers have been able to crack into WhatsApp's much-famed end-to-end encryption security system. WhatsApp claims that end-to-end encryption on its platform ensures only the user and the person he/she is communicating with can read what's sent, and nobody in between, not even WhatsApp. Users messages are secured with locks, and only the recipient and the user have the special keys needed to unlock and read messages.[br][br]The hack shows huge flaws in WhatsApp's claim that each of users chats have their own security code used to verify that the calls and messages sent to that chat are end-to-end encrypted.[br][br]Source: gadgetsnow.com[br] |
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发表于 2019-05-14 20:10:45
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