

If you're using a listed unsupported app, which is an altered version of the original, you'll receive a temporary ban for that too. WhatsApp has been known to hand users temporary bans if it finds evidence of people using unsupported versions on their devices. You can find links for both Android and iPhone on the official download page. WhatsApp recommends you only download the app from official stores. So it's best to only download apps from the Play Store if at all possible. The apps offered directly from organisations can be found on the Play Store anyway, in identical format. This is where the unknown source option comes into play.Ī lot of the time, downloading these files outside of the store isn't needed. However, these app downloads may be offered outside of the Play Store. Mobile networks and other organisations often offer downloadable software as part of their phone contracts. This isn't quite as nefarious as it sounds. What this means is "Do you want to install apps from outside the Google Play store". However, in settings there's usually an option which asks if you wish to download or install files from unknown sources. This is great news for those inside the walled garden, but what about those sitting outside? (Un)official store safetyĭepending on which version of Android you run, your settings and options available likely differ from model to model. Google Play Protect on Android now detects and disables previously downloaded versions of the fake WhatsApp apps, and the Google Play store shouldn't experience any threat from these apps. What Cathcart does say is that these programs promised new features, but were specifically designed to steal personal information stored on victim's phones. There's no detailed rundown of what the fake WhatsApp versions were getting up to on devices.
