WhatsApp discovers ‘targeted’ surveillance attack

By Grace Dzuwa

WhatsApp has 1.5bn users, but it believed the attacks were highly- targeted

Hackers were able to remotely install surveillance software on phones and other devices using a major vulnerability in messaging app  WhatsApp, it has been confirmed.

According to BBC,WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, said the attack targeted a “select number” of users, and was orchestrated by “an advanced cyber actor”.

A fix was rolled out on Friday.

The attack was developed by Israeli security firm NSO Group, according to a report in the Financial Times.

On Monday WhatsApp urged all of its 1.5bn users to update their apps as an added precaution