WhatsApp dismissed the alleged data breach report, saying it was speculative.
Posted on – Wed 14 Dec 22 at 02:48pm
Hyderabad: In this digital world, it is necessary to protect your data and privacy from hacking by unknown persons. The data of 500 million WhatsApp users was sold by an unknown seller on a hacking community forum, according to a November report by research-based online publication Cybernews. However, WhatsApp dismissed reports of an alleged data breach and said the reports were speculative.
While it can be difficult to keep hackers in check, you can follow some simple tips on how to stop them from accessing personal information.
check encryption
While WhatsApp chats are encrypted by default, to verify the encryption you need to scan a QR code or compare a 60-digit code.
Open a chat and tap the person’s name. Now click Encrypt to scan the QR code. Encryption can also be verified by comparing 60-digit codes.
Enable two-factor authentication
Enabling two-step verification on WhatsApp provides an extra layer of security for its users. An optional feature requires the user to enter a 6-digit PIN in addition to the OTP when downloading the app again on the same or another device.
Here’s how you do it:
- go to settings
- click on account
- Click 2-Step Verification > On
- Create a 6-digit passcode > enter email address
- Click Next > Click Save
Disable cloud backup
The messaging app offers its users the option to backup their chats on a daily, weekly, or even monthly basis. However, when chats and data are saved on Google Drive or iCloud, they are no longer encrypted and are vulnerable to hacking. This can be avoided by disabling the backup option.
Open Settings and tap Chat
- Select Chat backup and click Backup to Google Drive
- Now choose to never stop backup
- If you still want WhatsApp to back up your data, enable the end-to-end encrypted backup option, which provides an extra layer of protection for iCloud and Google Drive backups.
Open Settings, select Chats, and tap Chat Backup
- Now select the end-to-end encrypted backup and click open to create a password
- After creating the password, click Finish to complete the process
- ignore suspicious links
- Do not click on links received from unknown and random numbers. Also, delete links and other content sent by suspicious people.
