How can you ensure the privacy of your chats and safeguard your messaging account from potential theft or hacking? Below are 12 straightforward guidelines along with brief reasons for their significance.
Activate two-factor authentication
Importance: This feature prevents unauthorized access to your account through methods like SIM swapping. When activated, it requires you to enter a secret password in addition to an SMS verification code when you sign in to the messaging app on a new device.
Steps: Go to the security and privacy settings of your messaging app, create a secret password, and remember it. You’ll need to input it only when linking a new device to your account. To simplify this, consider generating and storing it using a secure password manager, or check the strength of your password with our Kaspersky Password Checker.
Do not share one-time passwords
Importance: Scammers may try to deceive you into revealing the verification code after it arrives in your messaging app to steal your account.
Steps: Never forward or voice one-time passwords related to chat app logins to anyone. Your friends, support staff, and banks will never require these codes. If someone requests a code, it’s likely a scammer.
Avoid scanning QR codes outside of the messaging app
Importance: Certain account hijacking tactics disguise themselves as invitations to join groups or chats. Scanning a QR code in an advertisement may instead let a scammer link their device to your account.
Steps: If someone requests that you scan a QR code, locate the scanner within the messaging app — usually in the Settings. Do not use your camera or any other QR-code scanning app. Read the prompts shown by the messaging app carefully: it will inform you whether you are joining a group or channel or linking a new device to your account.
Verify new contact requests cautiously
Importance: Scammers often impersonate individuals you know, saying things like, “Hi! It’s me again. I have a new phone number.” They might also be aware of your boss’s identity. Many scams leading to significant financial losses begin with messages from “friends” or “colleagues.” Another common attack is a “misdialed call” scam. For instance, “Is this Hannah? Oops, sorry! Wrong number. Anyway, how’s everything?”
Steps: If you receive a new chat request with no message history, be cautious! If this person claims to be an acquaintance, ask them something only they should know. In the case of a message from your boss, it’s wise to confirm their identity through a different means, such as their office phone, work email, or in person, before proceeding. Ignore any enticing offers, especially those containing links or files.
Utilize the block feature
Importance: This is the most effective method to eliminate stalkers, scammers, and unwanted ex-partners.
Steps: Don’t disregard spammers or scammers mentioned previously. Each chat app includes a “Block user” option—feel free to use it! This will stop the scammer from contacting you again, and after several reports, potentially anyone else. This feature is also useful for minimizing reminders of unpleasant individuals from your past.
Be cautious before clicking on links, even if they’re from a friend
Importance: Your friends can also be vulnerable. Scammers might compromise their accounts and use them to send misleading messages—including requests for help or provocations—to everyone in their contact lists, aiming to extort money or hijack further accounts.
Steps: Avoid suspicious links, unknown file attachments, pleas for money, requests to participate in dubious contests, messages like, “Is that you in that photo?”, and unexpected, too-good-to-be-true offers such as free premium subscriptions. To prevent falling into these traps, delete such messages immediately. If they seem to come from someone you know, reach out through another communication channel and inform them of the suspicious activity under their name. Acting quickly might help your friends recover their accounts, as time is often of the essence.
Limit access to your smartphone and messaging app
Importance: If your phone gets stolen or you lend it to someone, maintaining access control will prevent prying into your messages.
Steps: Enable screen lock features like fingerprint, Face ID, or a complex PIN. Also, activate App Lock in the settings of your phone or the messaging app. Your fingerprint or PIN will be required to access the app each time. This way, even if you hand someone an unlocked phone, they won’t be able to use the chat app.
Disable message previews
Importance: A locked phone screen might show sensitive information, including private messages and bank verification codes.
Steps: Turn off message previews on the lock screen. This can be done in the “Notifications” section of your phone’s settings.
Don’t send nudes!
Why this is important. Even if it’s just a one-time view message, the picture might be shown to people around or screenshotted and then used against you.
What to do. Avoid sharing anything that could upset, embarrass, jeopardize, or open you up to blackmail if published. This is true for any private information, not just nudes. If your nudes have already been leaked online, there might still be a chance to get them removed.
Be careful with group chats
Why this is important. You probably trust your friends. But how well do you know the people your friends add to groups?
What not to do. Don’t share your phone numbers, addresses, or other sensitive (your own as well as others’) personal information in large chats.
Limit your profile visibility
Why this is important. Neither scammers nor strangers need to see your profile photo or know when you were last seen online.
What to do. Open the Privacy section in the chat app settings and choose who can see your “Last Seen”, “Profile Photo”, “Status”, and so on. By default, this data is visible to everyone. Adjust the settings to your preference, choosing either “My Contacts” or “Nobody”.
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