Even though WhatsApp is one of the safest social media and messaging platforms, it can be sometimes unsafe and cannot keep users safe. Recently, a database containing the phone numbers of 487 million active WhatsApp users has been put up for sale on a hacking community forum. The hackers claim that the database includes 487 million active phone numbers from 84 countries. Here are the details about the database.
487 Million WhatsApp phone numbers potentially exposed to spam and scams
WhatsApp has nearly 2 billion users, which means the database on sale contains the phone numbers of one-quarter of WhatsApp users, 487 million. While it is not known how they gathered this database, the sellers say that they used their strategy. There are several ways to obtain phone numbers if they didn’t hack WhatsApp. You may have gathered the database from web pages, platforms, and more.
As we told earlier, the database includes phone numbers from 84 countries. Here are the numbers and countries:
- USA (32 Million)
- Egypt (45 Million)
- Italy (35 Million)
- Saudi Arabia (29 Million)
- France and Turkiye (20 Million each)
- Russia (20 Million)
- UK (11 Million)
Hackers can use this database for spam, phishing attempts, commercial, and several other activities. Additionally, there is nothing to find out whether your phone number is in that database.
How to change Privacy on WhatsApp
You may want to change your privacy settings after this event. You can keep your WhatsApp profile picture and status hidden from other people. Here is how to do it:
- Open Settings,
- Select Privacy,
- Then you can change “Last seen and Online,” “Profile Photo,” and “About.”
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