Large Number of Malaysian WhatsApp Numbers Have Been Put Up For Sale
There has been some worrying developments recently as a large number of Malaysian WhatsApp numbers have been put up for sale online.
Malaysian WhatsApp Numbers Leaked?
As reported by both Cybernews and Lowyat.net, there is a database seller who is selling a database with over 1.5 billion WhatsApp numbers from users spanning over 98 countries across the globe on. Roughly 21.4 million of them are said to be Malaysian users.
The seller specifically mentioned that the database only contains WhatsApp numbers and they have been divided for each country. These were allegedly not obtained via a data breach of any kind as they were obtained by data scraping.
Essentially, the seller (or someone related to them) sweeps data that are already out there online, such as on social media platforms like Facebook. While there is still suspicion that the data could still have been obtained from a Facebook data breach earlier this April, the seller claims that it is not the case.
While it can be hard to determine whose numbers are included in that database unless you got ahold of it, this is more so a public service announcement that a large number of you out there will likely be receiving spam messages on WhatsApp sooner or later from unknown people.
Pokdepinion: Get ready for a massive blocking spree. If you see a random number call you on WhatsApp, it’s best to ignore it.
