KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has reminded the public to ensure that the applications on their mobile phones are always updated to prevent their personal information from being hacked by irresponsible parties.
The commission said this in a statement after it received a complaint from a high-profile individual whose phone was hacked.
The statement said the modus operandi of the perpetrators was to impersonate as influential individuals and get the victim to download and install instant messaging applications such as Telegram and Viber on his or her phone.
“Next, the victim will be asked to share the verification code sent to his or her mobile phone.
“The sharing of the verification code will allow the suspect to take over the account, and gain access to the content linked to the victim’s account such as the contact list,” the statement said.
It said this, in turn, would allow the suspect to use the compromised account to impersonate the victim and fool the people on the contact list with fake messages.
Such fake messages can negatively affect the owner of the number, including being
falsely implicated in criminal activities.
The MCMC also advised the public to verify who they were in contact with and to avoid sharing the verification codes with third parties via suspicious calls or messages claiming to be influential individuals.
“If you fall victim (to the scam), report it immediately to the police so that further action can be taken,” the statement added. — Bernama