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Whatsapp and Android

Gio7707

Gio7707

Lurker
There is a known common virus within Whatsapp which loads into your cam and then is draining your battery very fast. It will use your contacts and attach videos or pic's and ask you to frwd them.

Will Android/Whatsapp do something to fix that security issue ???
 
Well obviously you'd have to ask Google (for Android) or Facebook (for WhatsApp) for a timeline for any fixes. I wouldn't expect either to answer though.

But can you be more clear about what you are referring to? A vuulnerability (which is not the same as a "virus") has been identified in the WhatsApp app which could allow it to be backed, but there are also many scams and phishing attacks, as well as some older malware that can access WhatsApp information on vulnerable devices (old versions of Android). So if you could provide a citation so we can be sure what you are asking about it will be easier for people to discuss.
 
sure, since I did a factory reset some of my screenshots vanished, but I believe it's called cc-qcam and the symbol is the same as android...afterwards also a message pops up saying "tag collected"
 
Keep in mind this help forum site isn't tied directly to Google so something like your '...known virus' posting here won't get a lot of traction as far as fixes. Google can address issues directly related to Android itself but it cannot fix other company's apps, that's the responsibility of the developers of the app. Here's WhatsApp contact info:
https://www.whatsapp.com/contact/
That said, I didn't see anything as far as 'cc-qcam' in the CVE database.
https://cve.mitre.org/
There is a QCam camera that's quite popular. Do you have one of them?
With bug bounty rewards becoming quite sizable, for an app like WhatsApp with its massive international user base you could make a lot of money if you can verify that 'cc-qcam' was actually the source of your problems.
 
"symbol the same as android" doesn't mean much: it could just mean that an icon hasn't been defined, or that the app is not properly loaded, or just that someone chose a generic icon.

You described this as a "known common virus in WhatsApp", but your second post makes no mention of WhatsApp and "cc-qcam" doesn't seem to have an association with WhatsApp in my searches. So can you provide a pointer to where this is "known"?
 
By symbol I mean image (the little android black icon) all i know it's a virus which will use your camera and the cpu will drain it ..not sure if it is qcam since my screenshots are not there...will follow up..
 
It might help to define the actual problem if we clarify what might be happening. A virus in relation to computerized devices is a specific term:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_virus
It's not a general term that can be applied to anything that's out of the ordinary. In your situation it could just be an app that requires a lot of system resources, or one that's just poorly coded and is riddled with memory leakage.
How did you determine this was actually an Android virus? While there are numerous Android malware instances and compromises out in the wild, an actual Android virus is still just a lab study. The first to actually become a widespread issue out in the public will be a huge money grab for both black and white hat hackers that dig into it. (...and it will undoubtedly have some kind of direct tie to yet another NSA leak.)
 
Yes, you started with the statement that there was a known and common WhatsApp "virus", apparently as a general comment rather than that you had a problem. Now you are saying that you have some symptoms that you "know" are due to malware, but not how you know, nothing about WhatsApp, nothing about a "common" and "known" problem or what that common problem is or where you know about it from.

So if you are asking for help I suggest you just describe exactly what symptoms you have and what actions you have taken - just the facts. If you think it sounds like something you have heard of please provide a link so that can be evaluated properly.
 
Hadron said:
Yes, you started with the statement that there was a known and common WhatsApp "virus", apparently as a general comment rather than that you had a problem. Now you are saying that you have some symptoms that you "know" are due to malware, but not how you know, nothing about WhatsApp, nothing about a "common" and "known" problem or what that common problem is or where you know about it from.

So if you are asking for help I suggest you just describe exactly what symptoms you have and what actions you have taken - just the facts. If you think it sounds like something you have heard of please provide a link so that can be evaluated properly.
Click to expand...

ok VIP member,

I already fixed the problem with a factory reset, yes it is a virus (qcam) but I don't know whether it has to do with whatsapp where the bug/virus was sitting (battery satus and it appears in there) At this point I don't know if it is related to Android or whatsapp ?? Just trying to get to the bottom of this thing...
 
Again, from your descriptions of the problem it was not likely to actually be a 'virus'. If you stop using that term to apply to any problem you encounter while using your phone, you'll find it much easier to fix some other problem in the future. At this point, you're putting the blame on Android, QCam, and WhatsApp but without any proof either was the actual source of what happened.
 
svim said:
Again, from your descriptions of the problem it was not likely to actually be a 'virus'. If you stop using that term to apply to any problem you encounter while using your phone, you'll find it much easier to fix some other problem in the future. At this point, you're putting the blame on Android, QCam, and WhatsApp but without any proof either was the actual source of what happened.
Click to expand...

thank you interesting forum..
 
Gio7707 said:
ok VIP member,

I already fixed the problem with a factory reset, yes it is a virus (qcam) but I don't know whether it has to do with whatsapp where the bug/virus was sitting (battery satus and it appears in there) At this point I don't know if it is related to Android or whatsapp ?? Just trying to get to the bottom of this thing...
Click to expand...
Well I've discovered that there is a security flaw in internet connected cameras sold under the QCam brand. Do you have one of those? None of the apps to control such a device I've found in the Play Store have an icon like you describe, but I doubt I've found them all because the Play Store search is frankly rubbish.

I don't think we'll be able to say much more at this point. You had a problem that you associated to something called qcam, but it's not clear what that is. And I'm still not clear why you think it might be connected to WhatsApp.

As general advice though, it isn't "viruses" you should be watching for on Android. A virus is a form of malware that is able to propagate itself between devices, and they are essentially non-existent on the Android platform. The real threat is "trojans", named after the Trojan horse of legend, which are innocent-looking apps that contain malware within them. That is overwhelmingly the way Android devices are infected, through tricking the owner into installing the malware themselves. So vigilance about what you install and where you install from is your best protection.
 
Hadron said:
Well I've discovered that there is a security flaw in internet connected cameras sold under the QCam brand. Do you have one of those? None of the apps to control such a device I've found in the Play Store have an icon like you describe, but I doubt I've found them all because the Play Store search is frankly rubbish.

I don't think we'll be able to say much more at this point. You had a problem that you associated to something called qcam, but it's not clear what that is. And I'm still not clear why you think it might be connected to WhatsApp.

As general advice though, it isn't "viruses" you should be watching for on Android. A virus is a form of malware that is able to propagate itself between devices, and they are essentially non-existent on the Android platform. The real threat is "trojans", named after the Trojan horse of legend, which are innocent-looking apps that contain malware within them. That is overwhelmingly the way Android devices are infected, through tricking the owner into installing the malware themselves. So vigilance about what you install and where you install from is your best protection.
Click to expand...

thanks so much , interesting forum
 
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