your WhatsApp can be hacked with your voicemail

Throughout the day we send dozens of messages through apps like WhatsApp and Telegram, we have private conversations and we share a lot of sensitive information. Therefore, we have to be very careful with this data and knowing the dangers we face can be of great help.

As we read in the blog A computer scientist on the side of evil, of the known pirate Chema Alonso, the criminals found Rather curious methods to steal accounts of apps like WhatsApp. One of them is not very complicated and is carried out with the help of your voice mail.

Be careful with your voicemail

The first time we download WhatsApp to a device, we have the option to recover our account. We have all gone through this process, we add our phone number and we can verify it with a code that comes by SMS. However, there is also the possibility of receiving a call in which the code will be dictated. It is the door that some use the Pirates steal whatsapp accounts.

The method is quite simple, and they can use it whether or not they have the victim’s cell phone. Here are the steps that the attacker would follow without having possession of the victim’s mobile:

• Enter the victim’s phone number to verify the account. An SMS will be sent to your device.
• When not using the code and after 1 minute, select the option to verify via a call.
• If the victim does not take the call, the WhatsApp system will leave a message with the code on their voicemail.

The criminal can access this message without having his cell phone at hand, there is a real danger. When you try to access another device’s voicemail box, a PIN code is asked, a 4-digit code which, in general, is not too complicated. If you use statistics you find out they would already have our WhatsApp account.

In a case where our smartphone was in the hands of the attacker, the process would be much easier. After entering the phone number, you just have to wait for the call – you don’t have to unlock a mobile to answer a call – and write down the code.

The same does not happen with Telegram

Telegram has a similar, but not identical process. This will give us the choice between two ways: take the verification code in an SMS or, after a few minutes, receive a call on the number we want to retrieve with the verification code.

Then? Where is the difference? In this case, no message is left in the voicemail, avoiding theft if the pirate does not have the victim’s smartphone in their possession. A small change in the process that helps protect our account.

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