With over two billion active users, WhatsApp is without a doubt one of the most popular apps around the world.
Unsurprisingly, this makes WhatsApp a prime target for hackers, who employ a range of crafty tactics to snoop on unsuspecting victims.
Thankfully, there are several things you can do on WhatsApp to protect your smartphone from cybercriminals.
WhatsApp said: “Privacy and security is in our DNA, which is why we have end-to-end encryption.
“When end-to-end encrypted, your messages, photos, videos, voice messages, documents, status updates and calls are secured from falling into the wrong hands.”
Here are four simple things you can do now to protect your account from hackers.
1 Enable two-step verification
Two-step verification is an optional feature that adds more security to your account.
WhatsApp explained: “When you have two-step verification enabled, any attempt to verify your phone number on WhatsApp must be accompanied by the six-digit PIN that you created using this feature.”
To enable two-step verification, open WhatsApp > Settings > Account > Two-step verification > Enable.
Once you’ve set up your six-digit PIN, WhatsApp will occasionally ask you for it to check it’s you.
WhatsApp added: “Never share a 6-digit WhatsApp SMS verification code with others, even if the other person appears to be someone you know or an organisation you trust. WhatsApp does not ask you to share your verification code.”
2. Use Face Lock
If you use WhatsApp on an iPhone running on iOS 9 or newer, you can enable Touch ID or Face ID.
WhatsApp explained: “When enabled, you must use Touch ID or Face ID to unlock WhatsApp. You can still reply to messages from notifications and answer calls if WhatsApp is locked.”
To enable Face ID or Touch ID, open WhatsApp Settings and Tap Account > Privacy > Screen Lock.
Turn on Require Touch ID or Require Face ID. You can select the length of time WhatsApp can be on standby mode before Touch ID or Face ID is required.
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3. Turn off cloud backup
While backing your chats up to the cloud can be helpful to restore your chats if you lose your phone, these messages aren’t protected via end-to-end encryption.
This means that law enforcement could ask Google or Apple for access to your backed up chats.
To turn off cloud backup, open WhatsApp Settings > Chats > Chat Backup > Auto Backup, and toggle it off.
4. Turn off read receipts
Finally, turning off read receipts can be a good way to protect your privacy on WhatsApp
To turn off your read receipts, go to Settings > Account > Privacy and disable Read Receipts.
WhatsApp added: “This won’t disable the read receipts for group chats or play receipts for voice messages. There’s no way to turn those settings off.”
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