WhatsApp has issued a stern warning to its customers in regards to the pretend variations of the app, urging them to keep away from downloading them. The firm’s CEO, Will Cathcart, mentioned in an announcement that customers may find yourself in hassle in the event that they obtain and use the modified model of the app.
According to Cathcart, the corporate’s safety workforce detected some malicious apps that declare to be just like the messaging app. These embody the “Hey WhatsApp” and “HeyMods.” He urged customers to keep away from downloading these apps and warned about their potential security.
He famous that the specter of cellular malware is a rising concern that must be countered. The safety group is growing new instruments and strategies to forestall it from spreading. He additional warned that these pretend apps can present a number of the similar options because the official model, however they don’t have the end-to-end encryption that customers get with the unique app.
He additional mentioned that the corporate’s workforce found that these apps’ promise to supply some new options to customers is only a rip-off to steal private info saved on individuals’s telephones.
Although the pretend model of WhatsApp isn’t accessible on the Play Store, customers ought to nonetheless keep away from downloading it from unofficial sources. To keep away from getting contaminated, customers ought to solely use the official WhatsApp app from the play retailer.
In response to the rising menace of cellular malware, Google has launched Google Play Protect which assist stop customers from downloading pretend variations of WhatsApp. The firm’s CEO thanked the corporate for its continued efforts in combating the difficulty. The CEO talked about that WhatsApp is taking enforcement motion towards these ‘malicious apps’ and can additional discover authorized choices to carry them accountable.
“We’ll of course continue our efforts to detect and block these kinds of apps going forward.” he mentioned on Twitter.
Source: www.financialexpress.com”