A new WhatsApp function is being used by cybercriminals to see everything on the screen of users’ mobile phones.
Since August of last year on WhatsApp you can use the scary screen sharing function to help a family member solve any mobile problem. Now this function is the entry point for cybercriminals to the user’s mobile phone .
All the new functions brought to the chat app owned by Meta allow it to achieve new uses and facilitate day-to-day life with one of the most installed applications in Spain. But as often happens, some of these functions involve giving certain permissions such as the possibility of sharing the screen so that everything that happens on it can be seen, including notifications.
Google is precisely developing the screen sharing function in Android 15, but without seeing the notifications that arrive at the mobile at all times . It is very important for privacy, since if the screen is being shared, as in this case of WhatsApp, and an SMS arrives with the PIN code of the new bank card, the user with whom the screen is being shared will see it without issues.
This vulnerability is what cybercriminals are taking advantage of on WhatsApp, as well as the lack of technological knowledge of some users. These are the steps scammers follow:
- The user receives a video call on WhatsApp.
- Scammers warn the user through the video call that the camera is not working well or there is an update error.
- They encourage the victim to press the share screen button to resolve the problem.
- The user presses the button and the scammers can see everything that happens on the victim’s screen.
- They can send an SMS security code to the mobile phone in order to transfer control of the victim’s WhatsApp account to another device.
The user hangs up the video call and in a matter of minutes they can lose access to their WhatsApp account as well as all the information they may have in the chats; It is usually easy to pass a screenshot of the bank account to a family member or any sensitive information such as ID or more.
With the upcoming Android 15 update, according to Android Police , it is expected that the cybercriminal will not be able to see any of the notifications such as incoming SMS that may reach the user’s mobile, even when sharing the screen through a video call on WhatsApp. Now, simply, if a person shares it, you can see all notifications such as that SMS message that arrives on your mobile.
