Dutch intelligence agencies have raised alarms over a significant hacking campaign conducted by Russian government hackers targeting users of Signal and WhatsApp. The campaign is said to particularly focus on government officials, military personnel, and journalists worldwide.
The Netherlands’ Defence Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD) and the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) disclosed that ‘Russian state actors’ are employing phishing and social engineering tactics, rather than malware, to compromise accounts on the two messaging platforms.
For Signal users, the hackers are posing as the app’s support team, engaging targets directly with messages about suspicious activities or potential data breaches. Once a target is deceived, the hackers request a verification code sent via SMS, ultimately allowing them to register a new device with a new number, impersonate the target, and potentially access their contacts. Despite victims being locked out of their accounts, they can regain access to chat history by re-registering, potentially overlooking the breach.
This revelation underscores the persistent security challenges faced by users of encrypted messaging apps and the evolving tactics employed by state-sponsored threat actors to gain unauthorized access to sensitive user data.
Source: TechCrunch