Before you suffer a panic attack let’s clear two things up – no one is after your nudie pics (we think) and the bug they found mostly affects those using WhatsApp Web, the PC version of the messaging app.
Right, deep breaths, on we roll. An Israeli-based security firm discovered the bug late last month and WhatsApp moved swiftly to remedy the problem. If you installed the August 27 update consider yourself covered, although updating your phone’s WhatsApp will still require you to update the PC version separately.
The bug, which could have put around 200 million users at risk, is described as follows on Neurogadget:
The security firm warned WhatsApp of the danger posed by this hack because the attack somehow demands cash from users. Once the malware enters your system, the hacker can easily lock you out of your system and to regain control or access, you may be asked to part with cash via some online payment means.
According to the security firm, the vulnerability is brought about, by the way, the app handles contacts, especially when they are in the vCard format. All a hacker needs to know is your WhatsApp-registered phone number, and that’s all. He will then send you a vCard message that contains arbitrary code. Once you open this innocent-looking message, the code will begin executing and thus spread infected files to your system.
Since WhatsApp is a cross-platform application, there is a good chance that this message will be opened by many users. Once the vCard is opened, the door will have opened wide for the hacker to do whatever he intended to do. Hence, the firm advises users that they should quickly update to the latest WhatsApp Web version to take advantage of this fix. All you need is to log out of the web client, clear your browsing history/cache and once again, log into the web client.
Simple fix, best you get on that before your PC starts demanding money just to function correctly.
[source:neurogadget]
