The recent controversies surrounding the WhatsApp hacking haven’t yet settled, and the world’s most popular messaging platform could be in the choppy waters once again.
The vulnerability affects both consumers as well as enterprise apps of WhatsApp for all major platforms, including Google Android, Apple iOS, and Microsoft Windows.
According to an advisory published by Facebook, which owns WhatsApp, the list of affected app versions are as follows:
- Android versions before 2.19.274
- iOS versions before 2.19.100
- Enterprise Client versions before 2.25.3
- Windows Phone versions before and including 2.18.368
- Business for Android versions before 2.19.104
- Business for iOS versions before 2.19.100
Attackers could have sent MP4 files to WhatsApp users, and if opened they would be able to steal users’ private pictures messages and information.
The website claimed the issue was resolved last month, but it was not made public – so users could have opened an MP4 file without realizing it.
But the company played down the reported breach, saying it had “no reason” to believe users had been impacted.
A spokesperson told: “WhatsApp is constantly working to improve the security of our service. We regularly make public reports on potential issues we have fixed consistently with industry best practices. In this instance, there is no reason to believe users were impacted and it would be wrong to claim otherwise.”
How to stay safe from the WhatsApp bug
To stay safe, it’s important to update your WhatsApp to the latest version.
Android users will need to make sure they’re running version 2.19.274.
And iOS users will need to ensure they’ve updated to 2.19.100.
Simply go to the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, search for WhatsApp, and press Update.
For more information, check out our website TheWebOrion.com.