Computer

If you have installed this, your WhatsApp account has been stolen: there are 1 million affected

the accounts of WhatsApp they are a very valuable object for hackers. Thanks to them, it is possible to obtain a large amount of personal information, both from the victim and from all of their contacts. Meta, responsible for this chat platform, has advanced security measures to prevent anyone from accessing this information without permission. However, hackers are always looking for new ways to gain unauthorized access to the platform. And one of the latest ways to achieve this has been through the creation of fake apps.

Meta has just launched a legal crusade against three companies that have been used to create and distribute fake WhatsApp apps in order to steal user accounts. These three companies (HeyMods, Highlight Mobi and HeyWhatsApp) have been distributing a series of APKs, posing as alternative clients of this messaging program, which, by installing them on the mobile and logging into them, took control of the conversations.

These apps (the best known being “AppUpdater for WhatsPlus 2021” and “Theme Store for Zap”) have been distributed through unreliable third-party stores, such as APK Pure, APKSFree, iDescargar and Malavida, but also have been uploaded in the Google Play Store. When the victim installs one of these applications, the app asks for WhatsApp data to authenticate and log in. By doing so, hackers manage to take control over the WhatsApp account, thus starting their attacks.

whatsapp windows

These apps promise users new functions and features. However, what they actually do is steal WhatsApp access data, and use it to access all the victims’ messages and send SPAM to all contacts.

What to do in case of infection

Although these applications have been infecting users since last May, it was not until July when Google Play Protect has been updated and has started to detect these applications as dangerous. But, if we had any of them installed, it’s already too late, because, even if we uninstall the app, the access credentials are already in the hands of hackers.

If we have installed any app released by these developers, or any app related to WhatsApp from stores outside the Play Store, it is necessary to take action as soon as possible. First and foremost, delete apps from the phone. And, if possible, reset it to its factory settings to make sure there is no trace left. Then download the official WhatsApp app from the Play Store and log in to it.

whatsapp messenger
whatsapp messenger
whatsapp messenger

And, once inside, we will have to review the conversations (to see if SPAM has been sent on our behalf) and, from the settings, close the session on all devices. By doing so, we will be changing the access credentials, and hackers will not be able to continue using our account.

Meta has launched legal action against the three aforementioned companies, on the one hand, for using their own platform to carry out hacking attacks, while on the other hand for breaking WhatsApp’s developer agreement and terms of use.

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