WhatsApp was hacked to take over the phones of senior government officials in countries allied to the U.S. The Facebook-owned messaging service’s investigation into the breach found that a “significant” number of those attacked were high-profile government and military officials, sources told Reuters.
WhatsApp Hack Victims Spread WorldWide
The victims were from at least five different countries spread across five continents. Victims were located in the U.S., United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Mexico, Pakistan, and India.
The new revelation came just days after WhatsApp filed a suit against Israeli cybersecurity firm NSO Group, which it alleged helped clients hack its servers. NSO sells its software exclusively to governments. It has though always denied any wrongdoing. The firm insists its software is used only to help fight criminality and terrorism.