WhatsApp claims to have overcome a security issue that caused users’ phone numbers to appear in Google search results.
According to TechCrunch, the reaction from WhatsApp came after Atol J. Ram, an internet security researcher, revealed that the phone numbers used by WhatsApp users for the click-to-chat feature were Google search. I can see
J. Ram had said that click-to-chat results in a link in which users’ phones appear in plain text.
Because the server root for these links does not have a robot.txt file, they show up in the index of Google or other search engines.
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The researcher looked at 300,000 phone numbers in Google search results and said that ‘site: wa.me’ can be searched by searching.
According to TechCrunch, this is not the first time the issue has been reported, with WaBetaInfo pointing it out in February.
Now it seems that WhatsApp has overcome the problem but it was a big security issue which lasted for many months.
Facebook blocked users from finding people in 2018 with the help of phone numbers.
WhatsApp also improved chat security by adding a feature to block group chat invites or select contacts from strangers.
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A spokesman for WhatsApp on the new security issue said the Click to Chat feature was designed to help users, especially small and micro businesses, stay in touch with their users.