{"id":108250,"date":"2018-09-07T15:47:19","date_gmt":"2018-09-07T15:47:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sftarticles.wpenginepowered.com\/en\/?p=108250"},"modified":"2025-07-01T23:04:19","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T06:04:19","slug":"fake-app-steal-your-whatsapp-data","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/fake-app-steal-your-whatsapp-data\/","title":{"rendered":"Watch out for this fake app that will steal your WhatsApp data"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>A clone of the popular Viber messaging app contains malware that steals all WhatsApp related data including photos, videos, and phone call records<\/h2>\n<p>Fake versions of popular apps are becoming a growing problem these days. Hackers and other bad guys know that they can get their viruses onto people\u2019s devices if they can hide it in convincing versions of the apps we use every day. We\u2019ve seen <a href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/fake-version-of-whatsapp\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">many popular apps cloned<\/a>, and we\u2019ve also seen less popular apps pumped full of malware and then <a href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/how-to-detect-fake-apps-in-the-google-play-store-in-just-3-steps\/\">pushed onto the Google Play Store<\/a>. Once installed, these fake apps infect our devices and are then very difficult to get rid of. The popular messaging and video call app Viber is the latest app to get this treatment.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_108253\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-108253\" style=\"width: 840px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-108253 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"There is a fake version of Viber that aims to steal all of your WhatsApp data\" width=\"840\" height=\"473\" srcset=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-768x433.jpg 768w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-664x374.jpg 664w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-238x134.jpg 238w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-436x246.jpg 436w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-370x208.jpg 370w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-304x170.jpg 304w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber-1200x675.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/09\/Fake-Viber.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 840px) 100vw, 840px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-108253\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">There is a fake version of Viber that aims to steal all of your WhatsApp data<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>You need to avoid\u00a0Viber Messenger<\/strong>, which is described as a <strong>Lite Chatting App<\/strong>. Victims fall prey to a phishing scam as the fake version of Viber is peddled on a website that has been built to look just like Google Play Store. The site even includes fake security certificates and the clone version of Viber comes with a fake <strong>Most Secure Messenger<\/strong> <strong>checkmark<\/strong> and shield, a claim of\u00a0<strong>500 million downloads<\/strong>, and a <strong>4.3-star rating<\/strong> just like it would on the original Google Play Store.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">New Android Spy in the game.<br \/>Spreads as fake <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Viber?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#Viber<\/a> via web that mimics Google Play.<\/p>\n<p>Functionality:<br \/>-steal <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WhatsApp?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#WhatsApp<\/a> media and document files<br \/>&#8211;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WeChat?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#WeChat<\/a> media<br \/>-all taken pictures<br \/>-files from Download dir<br \/>-record phone calls<\/p>\n<p>FBF13488ED36075B7F30CC5F0EB3CDBB<br \/>kudos <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/HunterMalware?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@HunterMalware<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/97IJ0WcefA\">pic.twitter.com\/97IJ0WcefA<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Lukas Stefanko (@LukasStefanko) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/LukasStefanko\/status\/1036552871486087170?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">September 3, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Viber is a very popular messaging app that works on multiple platforms and has been downloaded over 900 million times all over the world. It offers users instant messaging complete with stickers, GIFs, and even games. On top of that, Viber users have access to free video and voice calling over the internet and can pay a subscription for local and international calls to landlines and mobiles.<\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-card-program\">\r\n  <div class=\"sc-card-program__body\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row clearfix\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-logo\">\r\n        <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__img\" alt=\"Viber\" src=\"https:\/\/images.sftcdn.net\/images\/t_app-logo-l,f_auto,dpr_auto\/p\/038d9aec-96d2-11e6-bf4e-00163ec9f5fa\/2800435235\/viber-logo.png\" width=\"100px\" height=\"100px\">\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-title\">\r\n        <span class=\"sc-card-program__title\">Viber<\/span>\r\n        <a class=\"sc-card-program__button sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/viber.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Download Now<\/a>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-rating\">\r\n        <svg class=\"rating-score__content\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.1\" x=\"0\" y=\"0\" viewbox=\"0 0 50 50\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 50 50\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><path class=\"rating-score__background rating-score--good\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><path class=\"rating-score__value rating-score__value--80\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-dashoffset=\"80\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><text class=\"rating-score__number\" content=\"8\" text-anchor=\"middle\" transform=\"matrix(1 0 0 1 25 31.0837)\" data-auto=\"app-user-score\">8<\/text><\/svg>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <span class=\"sc-card-program__description\"><\/span>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__bigpic\" src=\"\" onerror=\"this.style.display='none'\">\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <a class=\"sc-card-program__link track-link sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/viber.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<p>With fake apps on the rise, it is more important than ever to <strong>only download apps from reputable catalogs like Softonic or direct from the Google Play Store.<\/strong> As this case involves a <strong>fake version of the Google Play Store,<\/strong> it is also important that you familiarize yourself with phishing scams so that you\u2019re best equipped for spotting false sites. Check out our <a href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/how-to-detect-fakescam-emails-and-avoid-phishing-attacks-hi-res-version\/\">guide to avoid phishing scams<\/a> to keep yourself one step ahead of the hackers.<\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-card-starred-link\">\r\n  <div class=\"sc-card-starred-link__body\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-starred-link__row clearfix\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-starred-link__col-logo\">\r\n        <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-starred-link__img\" src=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2017\/11\/email-logo-192.jpg\" width=\"100px\" height=\"100px\">\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-starred-link__col-title\">\r\n        <p class=\"sc-card-starred-link__title\">How to detect phishing attacks and scam emails<\/p>\r\n        <a class=\"sc-card-starred-link__button\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/how-to-detect-fakescam-emails-and-avoid-phishing-attacks-hi-res-version\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer sponsored\">Find out now<\/a>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <a class=\"sc-card-starred-link__link\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/how-to-detect-fakescam-emails-and-avoid-phishing-attacks-hi-res-version\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer sponsored\"><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<p>This fake version of Viber was discovered by Lukas Stefanko, who is a malware researcher at the Slovakia-based online security company ESET. He posted the malicious code on Twitter to build awareness.<\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-card-starred-link\">\r\n  <div class=\"sc-card-starred-link__body\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-starred-link__row clearfix\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-starred-link__col-logo\">\r\n        <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-starred-link__img\" src=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/04\/google-play-pantallas-1024x576.jpg\" width=\"100px\" height=\"100px\">\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-starred-link__col-title\">\r\n        <p class=\"sc-card-starred-link__title\">How to detect fake apps in the Google Play Store in just 3 steps<\/p>\r\n        <a class=\"sc-card-starred-link__button\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/how-to-detect-fake-apps-in-the-google-play-store-in-just-3-steps\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer sponsored\">Read now<\/a>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <a class=\"sc-card-starred-link__link\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/how-to-detect-fake-apps-in-the-google-play-store-in-just-3-steps\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer sponsored\"><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<p>Remember, you are your best weapon in the battle against threats like this. You should always double check the source of all your downloads and look out for spelling mistakes, confirm the name of the developer attached to the\u00a0program, and watch for other errors that could indicate that something isn\u2019t right. Most importantly, however, whenever possible make sure you only download apps from sites that you can trust.<\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-related-articles-white\">\r\n<p class=\"sc-related-articles-white__title\">More Softonic Articles<\/p>\r\n  <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__row\">\r\n    <a title=\"5 tips to prevent security issues with your phone \u25ba\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/5-tips-to-prevent-security-issues-with-your-phone\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__article\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__image\">\r\n        <div style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/03\/Screen-Shot-2018-03-19-at-12.34.02.png)\"><\/div>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__text\">\r\n        <p>5 tips to prevent security issues with your phone \u25ba<\/p>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <\/a>\r\n    <a title=\"8 tricks to strengthen your WhatsApp security \u25ba\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/8-tricks-to-strengthen-your-whatsapp-security\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__article\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__image\">\r\n        <div style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2017\/11\/whatsapp-web-screenshot-1024x576-1024x576.png)\"><\/div>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__text\">\r\n        <p>8 tricks to strengthen your WhatsApp security \u25ba<\/p>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__row\">\r\n    <a title=\"7 mistakes that put your internet security at risk \u25ba\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/mistakes-internet-security-risk\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__article\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__image\">\r\n        <div style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2017\/06\/5mistakesHeader-1024x576.jpg)\"><\/div>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__text\">\r\n        <p>7 mistakes that put your internet security at risk \u25ba<\/p>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <\/a>\r\n    <a title=\"8 tricks to boost your security on Google Chrome \u25ba\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/8-tricks-to-boost-your-security-on-google-chrome\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__article\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__image\">\r\n        <div style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2017\/11\/crome-security-1024x576-1024x576.jpg)\"><\/div>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-white__text\">\r\n        <p>8 tricks to boost your security on Google Chrome \u25ba<\/p>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<!-- Shortcode [playwire] does not match the conditions -->\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A fake Viber app is allowing hackers to steal your information. Don&#8217;t download it!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9073,"featured_media":108253,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","wpcf-pageviews":0},"categories":[1015],"tags":[2333,1043],"usertag":[839],"vertical":[],"content-category":[],"class_list":["post-108250","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-app-subdomain-redirectionwhatsapp","tag-whatsapp","usertag-vpn"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108250","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9073"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=108250"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108250\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":327412,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108250\/revisions\/327412"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/108253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=108250"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=108250"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=108250"},{"taxonomy":"usertag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/usertag?post=108250"},{"taxonomy":"vertical","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vertical?post=108250"},{"taxonomy":"content-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content-category?post=108250"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}