India’s cyber agency flags ‘high’ risk security issues in WhatsApp

India’s cyber security agency, CERT-In, on Saturday flagged instant messaging platform WhatsApp for security issues that could result in breach of private information. The agency has issued a “high” severity rating for the vulnerabilities in software that has “WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business for Android prior to v2.21.4.18 and WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business for iOS prior to v2.21.32”, PTI quoted the agency as saying. 

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CERT-In, or the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team, falls under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and is tasked with countering cyber attacks and protecting the country’s cyber space. 

“Multiple vulnerabilities have been reported in WhatsApp applications which could allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code or access sensitive information on a targeted system,” the agency said in a statement. 

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It said the vulnerabilities stem from WhatsApp’s cache configuration issues as well as missing bounds check within the audio decoding pipeline. It said that these vulnerabilities could allow a hacker to “execute arbitrary code” or get access to sensitive information. 

The agency also advised users to update the application to its latest version from the iOS App Store or Google Play store to plug the gaps.