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Owning and operating a smartphone means essentially having all your personal calls, chats, photos, and loved ones at your fingertips. However, what people often forget is that our phones also contain highly sensitive information like passwords, financial info, and bio-metric data, which can be used for malicious purposes if it falls into the wrong hands.
In today’s world, a smartphone has become more of a necessity, and the ability to watch, order, or connect to anyone at the touch of an app is an incredible convenience. Unfortunately, cyber-criminals have found yet another way to weaponize this ease of life.
A new cyber scam technique has come to the fore where criminals are hacking into phones by forwarding wedding invitations on WhatsApp. These messages are actually APKs or Android application package files disguised as online invitations.
Upon being downloaded and clicked by an unsuspecting reader, the app installs itself on the phone and allows cyber-criminals to gain complete control over the device. Thereafter, they can steal personal data and demand money to delete the files.
Even worse, the malware grants hackers remote access to contact details which can be used to request money from family or friends, who believe it to be a genuine request from the victim. Additionally, this app can also auto-read OTPs and allow such criminals to log into banks, withdrawing large amounts without a trace.
After several people in Himachal Pradesh became victims of this type of fraud, the government recently issued a warning advising people to exercise caution and not click on links from unknown mobile numbers.
