New WhatsApp scam alert! Now photos are being used to hack your phone and steal your money

Time of India

25-05-2025

In an era where digital communication is nearly inseparable from our daily lives, new forms of cybercrime have come up. Scams on WhatsApp being one of the most common these days. The widely used messaging platform in the world has now become the latest playground for hackers.
Among the many types of scams, this year has seen the rise of a particularly dangerous form of attack, called the "WhatsApp image scam", which uses a sneaky and hard-to-detect technique to compromise users' smartphones.
Unlike traditional scams that rely on phishing links or OTP fraud, this scam involves a far more deceptive method by hiding a malicious software inside image files.
A recent case in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, has brought national attention to this threat, where a man lost nearly ₹2 lakh after unknowingly downloading one of these infected images.
In contrast to the commonly known phishing scams and OTP frauds, the WhatsApp image scam marks a shift toward file-based attacks. Cybercriminals are now embedding harmful code inside image files using steganography, a technique once mainly used for secret communication. This allows the malware to hide in plain sight, bypassing standard phone security checks.
When these images are opened, the malware installs itself without alerting the user.
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It can then be used to steal sensitive data such as saved passwords, one-time passwords, and banking credentials, and can even perform unauthorised financial transactions.
The danger of this scam became very real for a resident in Jabalpur, after receiving and opening an image from an unknown number, he later discovered that nearly ₹2 lakh had been drained from his bank account. Authorities traced the incident back to malware that entered his phone via the image, exposing how devastating these attacks can be even for alert users.
In response, the Department of Telecom issued a public warning, urging citizens to avoid downloading media files from unknown WhatsApp numbers. Cybersecurity professionals have called this new tactic "significantly more dangerous than traditional scams because it leaves fewer visible signs, making detection and prevention harder.'
What can users do to prevent falling prey to the scam?
Experts recommend enabling two-factor authentication, keeping device software up to date, and using a reputable antivirus app. WhatsApp is also expected to roll out advanced scanning features to detect such threats in upcoming updates. Until then, caution remains the best defense.