If you've been paying attention to WhatsApp's recent appearances on the news, you'll know that the company has recently uncovered a targeted surveillance attack in their systems, intended to collect information about certain users. According to an official statement from WhatsApp, hackers were somehow able to remotely install software into phones and other devices using the WhatsApp communication tool.
The hackers got access to WhatsApp through a major vulnerability in the software. The WhatsApp team, now owned by Facebook, announced that the cybercriminals have targeted a specific number of users and that the whole event was orchestrated by a "sophisticated" individual.
A fix was rolled out for the surveillance attack very quickly, but WhatsApp isn't taking any chances. The company has urged more than 1.5 billion users to update their apps, as promptly as possible.
How to Update Your WhatsApp
To update WhatsApp on an Android phone, go to the Google Play store, and click on the menu option. Tap on "My Apps and Games." If your WhatsApp tool has already been updated recently, then it will have a button next to it that says "Open." If you need to update your app, the button will read "Update" instead. The latest version you need is 2.19.134.
If you're an iPhone user, you'll need to visit the App store and click on Updates at the bottom of the screen. Again, like with Android users, if you've already updated your app recently, it will have a button next to it that reads "Open." If the button says "Update," tap it to upgrade to version 2.19.51.
According to recent press releases, the surveillance software used in the attack was developed by the NSO Israeli firm. The flaw that allowed the hackers to get into WhatsApp was discovered by Facebook earlier in May, and some users have questioned how much the company is doing to protect them now that Facebook is in charge.
