Washington: WhatsApp hacking campaign has been identified after the Meta-owned messaging platform confirmed that cyber attackers exploited a chain of vulnerabilities in both WhatsApp and Apple devices. The incident has affected fewer than 200 people worldwide, according to the company.
The communication service has said that it has patched the flaws which allowed hackers to take advantage of a second weakness on Apple devices to compromise systems. Cybersecurity experts have noted that this case represents a targeted cyberespionage effort rather than a widespread attack.
Amnesty International’s Security Lab has begun investigating the issue, with Donncha O Cearbhaill, who heads the lab, stating that his team has started to collect forensic data from potential victims.
Early assessments have indicated that both iPhone and Android users were impacted, including members of civic and civil society groups.
🚨 BREAKING: New zero-click exploit used to hack WhatsApp users.
WhatsApp has just sent out a round of threat notifications to individuals they believe where targeted by an advanced spyware campaign in past 90 days.
Seek out expert help if you have received this alert pic.twitter.com/i4cHLsiNOr
— Donncha Ó Cearbhaill (@DonnchaC) August 29, 2025
Security analysts have suggested that the WhatsApp hacking campaign may have extended beyond WhatsApp itself, with other applications potentially affected. The campaign highlights growing concerns about highly sophisticated cyberattacks that use multi-step vulnerabilities across platforms to infiltrate devices.
This case underscores the risk faced by individuals in sensitive sectors, particularly activists and civil society members, who remain frequent targets of cyberespionage. WhatsApp has reassured its global user base that the vulnerability has been fixed, but it has urged users to update both the app and their device software to ensure protection against similar risks.
The discovery has raised questions about the resilience of widely used communication services against complex cyber operations. Experts have stressed the importance of close monitoring and rapid responses to such vulnerabilities to reduce the potential impact on at-risk individuals.
By confirming the swift patch and limited number of affected users, WhatsApp has attempted to contain concerns. However, the investigation by Amnesty International and security researchers continues to assess the full scope of the WhatsApp hacking campaign.
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