480 million WhatsApp data suspected to be leaked, affecting more than 11.67 million users in Malaysia

480 million WhatsApp data suspected to be leaked, affecting more than 11.67 million users in Malaysia.
Facebook sharing button 2.9ktwitter sharing button 17telegram sharing button. Whatsapp Number sharing button 40sharethis sharing button(Washington, 25th) US media reported that a hacker group recently sold more than 400 million WhatsApp user data online, affecting more than 11.67 million users in Malaysia.

According to a report by the cybersecurity website “CyberNews” on Friday, a hacker group has recently been selling more than 487 million WhatsApp user data online, involving users in 84 countries or regions around the world, including the United States and Japan. The above-mentioned media conducted a data sample survey and expected the situation to be true.

Why WhatsApp data suspected?

According to reports, on November 16, someone claimed on a well-known hacker forum to sell a 2022 database involving the phone numbers of 487 million WhatsApp users. Currently for sale, more than 44 million users in Egypt and Kuwait are affected, 35 million in Italy, 32 million in the United States, 29 million in Saudi Arabia, 20 million in France and Turkey, and more than 11 million in the United Kingdom. Affected. There are 2,937,800 users in Hong Kong, 670,000 users in China, and 735,000 users in Taiwan.

The CyberNews website contacted the seller and received nearly 2,000 user information samples from the United States and the United Kingdom. After investigating the phone numbers, it was confirmed that they were WhatsApp users. During the negotiation with the hackers, the hackers did not disclose how they obtained these large numbers of phone numbers, but they guaranteed that they were all active users.

The seller told Cybernews that they were selling user data for US$7,000 (approximately RM31,359) in the United States, US$2,500 (approximately RM11,199) in the UK, and US$2,000 (approximately RM8,959) in Germany. ).

The report pointed out that such leaked information is mainly used by hackers for text messages and phishing attacks, so users are advised to remain vigilant against calls from unknown numbers, unsolicited calls and messages.

Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, has not yet responded to this request. WhatsApp currently has more than 2 billion monthly active users worldwide, and this time, up to a quarter of user data was leaked.