2024-03-15 11:00:00
Having your account hacked on any social network or messenger is certainly a very annoying situation. This scenario, however, ends up taking on an even greater proportion when it comes to the WhatsApp Messenger.
This is precisely because of its high popularity in Brazil. As a result, we have a large amount of personal information being exchanged with friends, colleagues and family.
Therefore, below we have separated some tips on what can be done if you are experiencing this unpleasant situation.
Try logging into your account
The first thing to do in these cases is to log into your WhatsApp account with your phone number. Then, confirm the code that will arrive via SMS on your device. Never share these numbers with anyone!
If you have been a victim of cloning of your cell phone number (chip cloning), you will not be able to receive this SMS. In this case, contact your operator immediately to carry out the process of recovering your number.
Once it is entered, the person using your account will be automatically logged out. Note that, if you use it, you may also need to enter the code for the two-step verification. If you don’t know what it is or don’t remember activating that feature, perhaps the attacker turned it on while they had access to your account.
In these cases, you will need to wait a period of seven days to be able to access your account without this password. Despite this, the Meta messenger makes it clear that the other person will remain disconnected from your account.
Disconnect suspicious devices
If you used WhatsApp Web on a shared computer, other people may have access to your conversations. To protect yourself, unlink devices you don’t recognize.
On the iPhone, open WhatsApp, tap “Settings” and then “Connected devices”. Select the one you don’t recognize and tap “Disconnect”.
After recovering your account, remember to activate or change the password used for two-factor authentication. Also follow other safety tips we gave in this other article.
Notify your contacts
If you have access to your contacts’ numbers in your phone’s address book, tell them that your account has been compromised and that they should not chat with or make money transfers requested by the person impersonating you.
Another alternative is to place a notice on your social networks that your account is currently in the possession of someone else.
Block suspicious numbers
If a strange number starts messaging you or you are placed in an unknown group, block it and report it as spam to the WhatsApp team. This can be done within the conversation itself.
Contact WhatsApp
If your account still hasn’t been recovered following following the tips above, the next step is to contact the WhatsApp support team.
This can be done by sending an email to [email protected]. In the subject, make it clear that your account has been cloned, hacked or stolen.
Also, don’t forget to leave a description of what happened and the phone number affected by the invasion in the body of the message. It must be in international format — in Brazil, for example, use +55, followed by your city’s area code and your telephone number.
Another alternative is to access the contact page on the messenger website.
via MakeUseOf, Digital Look
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