How to protect WhatsApp from third party access
WhatsApp is the easiest and most convenient messenger. This explains its incredible popularity around the world. However, when sharing information with friends, the user wants to be sure that his account is safe. Therefore, it will not be amiss to know in advance what to do if the Vatsap was hacked.
In order not to think about what to do if WhatsApp was hacked, you need to carry out preventive measures.
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How to protect Vatsap from breaking and reading messages
Use two-step verification
Not so long ago, a two-factor authentication function appeared in the application, which allows you to protect the user’s personal information from outsiders as much as possible.
To enable two-step verification:.
- Go to the application “Vatsap”.
- In the “Settings” menu, find the item “Account”.
- Select the “Two-step verification” function and enable it.
- The system will ask you to come up with an access code, which in the future will need to be entered when connecting a messenger to other devices.
- Enter your personal email address with which you can recover your WhatsApp password. Please note one point: within a week after turning on the function, the phone number cannot be confirmed without an access code. After 7 days, this feature will appear, but then all messages that are in standby mode will be deleted.
For additional protection of access to your WhatsApp account, it is recommended to activate a two-step verification.
In order to disable two-step verification, click on the appropriate button in the messenger settings.
Using pin
The most reliable and easiest way to protect WhatsApp correspondence is to lock the screen with a PIN code. This feature is available in almost all new-generation smartphones..
To unlock, enable or wake up the system, you will be required to enter a password or pattern.
There is a third option – a fingerprint. This solution is more reliable, but not available on all models..
Account setup
All messages in WhatsApp are protected by end-to-end encryption, the keys for which are in the settings of the messenger. With their help, the application encodes personal data and sends it to the interlocutor.
To crack Vatsap, attackers change keys to their own and read information.
In order for you to suspect something was wrong, do the following in your account settings:
- in the application go to the “Settings” menu;
- select “Accounts” and “Security”;
- select “Show security notifications”.
After that, the system will report every key change..
Hide photos and videos in the gallery
Not the most successful messenger function is to save received media files in the smartphone gallery. In order to hide them, you need to create a .nomedia file in the application folder, and then restart the gadget. This is done using a simple file manager.. Now photos and videos will not be available to a random viewer.
Deny access to whatsapp by a third-party application
An excellent protection for confidential information will be the installation of a PIN code on the application.
To do this, download a special program to your phone, for example, App Lock. With it, you can set a password for many applications, including WhatsApp.
One of the advantages of this program is that it photographs an attacker. This means that when you enter the wrong pin, the curious runs the risk of being exposed.
Security with WhatsApp Web Version
This version of the application is extremely easy to use. It is convenient to conduct and copy correspondence, do mailings to friends and relatives. You only need to read the QR code using the gadget. After that, all information will instantly be visible on the monitor screen..
To prevent WhatsApp from being hacked, you should install applications from trusted stores, but in this case, you should take some precautions:
- Check for disconnection before moving away from the monitor.
- Do not leave the unlocked phone near the computer and do not allow unauthorized persons to read the code and read private messages.
- Install new applications from trusted Apple and Google stores. Otherwise, malware can steal and send confidential information for the mercenary purposes of fraudsters..
The WhatsApp web version has one useful option that can help other people identify spying and reading emails. In order to use it, go to the messenger settings and select WhatsApp Web / Desktop.
A list of all active connections to the account appears. Click “Quit All Computers.” Any third-party access to the page will be excluded..
Beware of fraudulent messages
WhatsApp has become so popular that dishonest people could not get around the application. Newsletters are constantly coming: raising funds for the treatment of a seriously ill child, shocking pseudo-news, nonexistent promotions, and much more. All these tricks are designed for gullible citizens and carry only selfish intent.
Recently, anti-cybercrime experts have identified a new type of fraud: attackers did newsletters on behalf of popular companies (Adidas, Rolex, Nescafe) in order to steal user confidential information.
The letter said that there is a free giveaway. The link led to a phishing site, which suggested entering a name, answering several questions and sharing information with thirty friends in the What’s app.
The creators of the messenger do not recommend responding to letters from unknown senders, as well as clicking on the links contained in the messages. Even if you receive a message that the user’s security code has changed, then you’ll be careful and careful.
Lock a lost or stolen smartphone
Account deactivation
If the gadget is lost or stolen, you can contact the WhatsApp support service with a request to deactivate your account. To do this, write in the subject line: Lost / Stolen: Please deactivate my account and enter your phone number.
Lock lost Android and iOS at a distance
Find iPhone
Modern gadgets provide such an opportunity. IPhone users will be much easier to do than Android phone owners..
Apple has developed the “Find iPhone” program, with which the owner of the device can track his location from any computer using GPS and cellular data, then block the device or remotely delete all data.
Find Samsung
Samsung Android smartphones have a similar program called Find My Phone. In order to configure it, you need:
- create an account;
- check all items in the security settings;
- in the browser, register in the smartphone search service and confirm the registration.
Since then, the owner of the gadget can delete, save or download information from a distance, lock and unlock the device, use the internal camera to photograph the face of the attacker and even send a message to the lock screen.
Find other smartphones
Phone users from other manufacturers will have to find their own search software.
One of the most popular is Dr.Web anti-virus. There is an “Anti-theft” option in the service’s settings, which allows you to track the device via GPS, lock the screen, set a confirmation code and reset the device to factory settings, as well as turn on a loud signal that will sound until the phone is turned on.
Android or iOS is not important. You can protect WhatsApp data from prying eyes, the main thing is to know how.