How to know if WhatsApp is spied on

Do you sometimes worry that someone might unknowingly access your WhatsApp and spy on all your conversations with your friends? You're a little paranoid, let me tell you, but ultimately, you're right to worry about issues like cybersecurity. As secure as it may be, WhatsApp is a human-made product and, as such, isn't perfect. This means it can have weaknesses or even actual security holes that could allow malicious individuals to intercept other people's communications. How to tell if WhatsApp is being spied on

If you'd like to delve deeper into the topic and dispel any reasonable doubts about the privacy of your communications, take five minutes of your free time and let me give you a hand. I'll give you some "tips" on How to tell if WhatsApp is being spied on And I'll suggest some common-sense practices you can implement to make your chats less appealing to malicious users. I assure you, it's not particularly difficult; in fact, there's very little technical knowledge to understand.

So, I'd say let's not waste any more time and immediately look at the steps you need to take to find out if your WhatsApp communications are secure or if there's a risk someone is spying on them. Happy reading and good luck... I sincerely hope you don't make any disturbing discoveries regarding your privacy!

Control the accesses of WhatsApp Web / Desktop

As I also explained to you in my tutorial on how to use WhatsApp on PC, services like WhatsApp Web and applications like the official client of WhatsApp for Windows and macOS They allow you to use WhatsApp on your computer by "replicating" the app installed on your smartphone. This means you can access your chats only if your phone is connected to the internet and the official WhatsApp client or WhatsApp Web has been paired with your smartphone by scanning a QR code. This is an extremely convenient solution, it works well, but it presents a small, but significant, privacy risk: works even if smartphones and computers are not connected to the same Wi-Fi network.

This means that, potentially, an attacker could gain access to your communications simply by convincing you to lend him your smartphone for a few seconds, by logging in to WhatsApp Web or the official WhatsApp client using his computer (or tablet) and keeping the option checked. Stay connectedBy checking this option, the smartphone remembers the pairing made with the computer and allows subsequent access to WhatsApp Web and/or the WhatsApp PC client without requiring a new QR code scan and without requiring the computer to be physically nearby.

Verify unauthorized access to WhatsApp Web

Luckily, there's a very simple way to check for unauthorized access to WhatsApp Web or the official WhatsApp PC client and, if necessary, block it. By accessing the WhatsApp settings on your smartphone, you can view a complete list of accesses made by WhatsApp Web and WhatsApp for PC and decide to block them instantly. By blocking them, all computers connected to the smartphone will lose access to WhatsApp Web and WhatsApp for Windows/macOS and will be asked to rescan the QR code (an action the attacker in question will be unable to perform because they no longer have possession of your smartphone).

Going into more detail, to check the list of WhatsApp Web and WhatsApp for PC accesses on your smartphone, you need to start Whatsapp, press on the button (…) located at the top right (if you use Android) or on the card Settings (if you use iPhone) and go up WhatsApp Web / Desktop.

At this point, check all active WhatsApp Web and WhatsApp Desktop sessions and, if you find any suspicious ones, terminate them. To terminate a WhatsApp Web/Desktop session on Android, tap on it and reply. Disconnect at the notification that appears on the screen. To do this on iPhone, swipe from right to left on the session you want to interrupt and press the button Disconnect that appears laterally.

Do you want to stop all WhatsApp Web and WhatsApp Desktop sessions simultaneously? No problem. Pajamas on the voice Disconnect from all computers, confirm (by replying Disconnect (at the warning that appears on the screen) and that's it.

Check for spy applications

If in the WhatsApp Web sessions you did not find anything strange but you still suspect that someone may be spying on your communications, try checking for the presence of applications-spy on your smartphone. Spy apps, as their name suggests, are applications that operate secretly on your smartphone and allow you to record all your smartphone activity: texts typed, apps launched, phone numbers called, and so on. Some of them are very difficult to detect because they operate stealthily, but there are some clues that can reveal their presence. Now I'll explain what they are and how to spot them on Android and iOS.

Android

How to tell if WhatsApp is being spied on

If you are using an Android terminal, the first step I recommend you take is to enter the settings menu settings (the gear icon found on the home screen or in the drawer with links to all the apps installed on your smartphone) and check for any applications with administrative permissions, i.e., permissions that allow them to control all activities performed on the device. Then select the items Safety is Device administrators and check if among the apps listed on the screen that opens there are applications that you do not know and that could hide espionage intentions. If there are app names you don't know and you want to make sure of their nature, do a simple Google search.

If you find any applications with administrative permissions that have spying purposes, disable them immediately by removing the check mark from their icon and uninstall them. To uninstall them, go to the menu Settings> App Android, select it from the list of apps installed on your device and press the button Uninstall.

From the same screen you can also check if there are any “suspicious” applications that do not have administrator permissions but are still installed on your smartphone: if you find any, proceed to remove them by following the instructions I have just given you (or by reading my tutorial on how to uninstall Android app).

If you have subjected your smartphone to the procedure root, I recommend you to open the application too SuperSU / SuperUsers and check the list of those who have root permissions. Among them could also be some spying apps that someone installed on your device while it was unattended.

Again, if you notice any "suspicious" names, act promptly by revoking the root permissions of the app you think is potentially dangerous and uninstalling it from your device. To monitor recent activity of apps that require root permissions, select the tab with the log by SuperSU / SuperUser.

Other clues that could reveal the presence of a spy app on the phone are excessive battery consumption it's a abnormal overheating on the part of the latter.

Spy app on the phone

Let's be clear, these are two very generic "symptoms": they could also be caused by apps that have nothing to do with phone monitoring activities, but it's still best to investigate when they appear. To this end, I recommend using the app Wakelock Detector It constantly monitors your smartphone's status and lets you know which applications are keeping the processor "awake," causing the device to overheat and leading to abnormal battery consumption. To learn more about how it works, read my tutorial on how to save Android battery.

If, despite all these precautions, you still fear being spied on, all you have to do is save all your data and perform a thorough "formatting." This will delete all apps and data from your phone. You'll restore Android to factory settings and, if present, also delete any spyware apps on the device. If you need help, see my tutorial on how to reset Android find all the information you need on how to format an Android terminal.

iOS

How to tell if WhatsApp is being spied on

iOS, the iPhone's operating system, makes it quite difficult to install spy apps (unless the phone has been subjected to the procedure of jailbreak, in that case the system is more “open” and allows for a much easier installation of spy apps) but this does not mean that it is immune.

How to tell if WhatsApp is being spied on. To check for suspicious apps on your iPhone, open the Settings menu. settings (the gear icon found on the home screen) and go to General> iPhone free spaceAfter a few seconds, a list of all the apps installed on your device will appear. If you notice any suspicious ones, select them and press the button. Delete app to remove it.

If you use an iOS version prior to 11, you can access the same menu by going to Settings> General> Space on device and iCloud and pressing on the voice Manage space related to the field Device space .

Another way to find potential spyware apps on your iPhone is to check the list of custom profiles installed on the system. Custom profiles are used for advanced applications, such as those that require the use of VPNs, to have greater freedom of action within iOS. Then go to the menu Settings> General> Profile and device management. Check if there are any suspicious profiles set up on your iPhone. If you can't find the Custom Profiles menu, it means that no apps installed on your phone are currently using them.

To conclude, especially if you have an iPhone subjected to jailbreak, I recommend you open the browser (Safari). Try connecting to the following addresses: localhost: 8888 is localhost: 4444. These are two addresses used by some apps for remote monitoring of mobile phones. Through which the apps in question reveal their presence and allow you to adjust their settings.

Another “secret technique” that allows you to reveal the presence of some spy apps consists in opening the dialer and dial the number *12345If after entering one of these codes, you find yourself in front of a login screen or a real control panel. This means that a spyware app is installed on your iPhone. To remove it, open Cydia, find the packages related to the latter and remove them. If you need help, you can read my tutorial on how to use Cydia in which I illustrated some basic concepts related to the operation of this alternative store for iPhone (and iPad) jailbroken.

If after all these tests your iPhone appears "clean" but you still suspect someone is spying on your activities, all you have to do is back up your data and then reset your device. Here's an explanation. how to reset iPhone in my tutorial dedicated to the topic.

Avoid public Wi-Fi networks

As I have been able to explain to you in numerous circumstances. By now WhatsApp uses a system of end-to-end encryption which makes messages, photos and videos visible only by legitimate senders and recipients. To explain it in simple words, each message has its own unique lock and key. That can only be used by those who send and receive messages. All the others, including the WhatsApp servers, see the messages in encrypted form, therefore incomprehensible. In short: even trying to “sniff” a wireless network in which WhatsApp is used, any attackers would get nothing but illegible information.

That said, however, there's no point in taking unnecessary risks. New security vulnerabilities are discovered every day, and WhatsApp's system could be compromised one day. My advice, therefore, is to be careful about the Wi-Fi networks you connect to and to avoid public Wi-Fi networks. As is well known, they're a favorite hunting ground for "spies." When you're away from home or the office, skip open access points and stick to your carrier's 3G/4G network. You'll use up a bit of data, but you'll gain in security.

If you want, more info on the encryption system used by WhatsApp, consult the official website of the application.

Other useful tips

At this point, you should have been able to figure out if your WhatsApp is being spied on. That said, never forget to put all those things into practice. little common sense tricks. Which allow you to sleep relatively soundly and reduce the risk of being spied on. What are these precautions I'm talking about? Here's a quick list.

• Do not leave the phone unattended – I know, it's trivial, but it's precisely in these trivialities that we often get lost. After all, it only takes two minutes to install a spy app or gain unauthorized access to WhatsApp Web/Desktop with a phone.
• Set a secure PIN – Another seemingly trivial but crucial precaution. If you set a secure PIN on your smartphone (PIN, not pattern, which is much easier to guess with a glance from a distance), you won't be able to allow any intruders to unlock your device to install spyware or access WhatsApp Web/Desktop. To set a secure PIN on Android, go to the menu  Settings> Security> Screen Lock> PIN; to do it on iOS go to  Settings > Touch ID & Passcode > Change Passcode (or Add code).
• Check your access to WhatsApp Web / Desktop often – just as explained above.
• Don't be afraid if someone says they know your WhatsApp access times. There are apps that allow you to discover the dates and times a user logs into WhatsApp. Simply by entering their mobile number. They use public data available on WhatsApp servers. Therefore, they can't really be called spy apps and don't allow you to capture communications in any way. They're a little "creepy," yes, but not dangerous, to put it simply (and they don't always work properly)!
• Do not use WhatsApp for ultra-confidential communications WhatsApp is a closed-source application. Its source code cannot be thoroughly examined. Therefore, it's impossible to know if there are any security vulnerabilities that could expose users' communications to privacy risks. Given the above, it's best to turn to equally secure but open-source solutions, such as Signal for Android is iOS It uses the same end-to-end encryption as WhatsApp, but is open source, meaning it enjoys greater community control. Even Edward Snowden, the main architect of the data breach that led to the publication of many classified US government documents, uses it!