Dubai, United Arab Emirates – The Cybersecurity Council of the UAE government warned against answering anonymous calls via WhatsApp.
He confirmed that the phone could be hacked with just one call, in what is known as the Zero Day attack.
He explained that the Zero Day attack is an unknown vulnerability that a hacker exploits before it is discovered.
He pointed out that in the WhatsApp application, for example, just one call from an unknown number is enough to hack the phone, access personal photos and conversations, and monitor the fingerprint of the WhatsApp account owner.
He also advised individuals to follow six preventive measures against a zero-day attack.
These include preventing anonymous numbers from being contacted, not clicking on suspicious links, and using a reliable security app.
In addition to taking information only from official sources, always updating the WhatsApp program, and activating two-step verification.
The Cybersecurity Council had previously warned of what is known as a “zero-day attack,” which targets the WhatsApp application via a short connection, without the need to respond or open any link or file, and which represents a very serious threat, as it is a type of zero-day attack, which activates the vulnerability as soon as the connection occurs, explaining that some cases are not detected immediately, as the user may not be aware that his device has been hacked for a period of time Pointing out that the vulnerability enables the attacker to access data, including photos and conversations.
He called on all users to activate security updates on an ongoing basis, and to rely on multi-factor authentication in their sensitive accounts.
Avoid using personal devices for highly sensitive correspondence, especially for employees of government agencies and vital sectors.
