Russian hackers attack Signal and WhatsApp - thousands of accounts at risk
Kyiv • UNN
Russian special services are stealing access to messengers of officials and military personnel through confirmation codes. Encryption has not been broken; the cause is the human factor.
Hackers linked to Russian special services are conducting a large-scale campaign to steal access to accounts in popular messengers, including Signal and WhatsApp. This was reported by the Center for Countering Disinformation, according to UNN.
Details
According to American law enforcement, the attacks are primarily aimed at users with "high intelligence value" – current and former officials, military personnel, politicians, and journalists.
The attackers have already gained unauthorized access to thousands of accounts, allowing them to read private correspondence, view contacts, and send messages on behalf of the victims.
Such breaches are also used for further phishing attacks – through compromised accounts, hackers try to gain access to new victims.
At the same time, experts emphasize: messenger encryption has not been broken. The main reason for the compromise is the human factor.
Hackers impersonate security services and trick users into providing verification codes, after which they gain full access to accounts.
The Center also notes that similar attacks are confirmed by the Dutch special services, which previously reported on Russia's global campaign against messenger users.