EdgeXplore

Security researcher Rajshekhar Rajaharia took to Twitter the other day to warn about a new scam making the rounds—the goofily named “WhatsApp Pink.” This Android app promises to be a fun new variant of the popular chat app that comes with an all-pink UI. And while the “pink app” part might be true, the app isn’t actually an official version of WhatsApp, nor even a clone. It’s malware.

This scam isn’t exactly subtle, but it’s proven effective enough to make a significant number of people believe there truly is an alternate-color WhatsApp app going around. And the shifty .APK download link is making the rounds through group chats, of all places, which makes it appear slightly more trustworthy. Your friends and/or colleagues wouldn’t lead you astray with malware, would they?

As always, a little common sense prevails in these situations. It’s a good practice never to download and install an .APK someone sends you unless you are absolutely sure you know what it is. You can always pull up your favorite search engine and find the file or app yourself, rather than using a provided link, which will probably tell you real quick whether the app or .APK is itself legitimate; at the very least, you’ll be able to ensure you’re grabbing the right app or .APK from an official website or repository.

It doesn’t matter if it’s your parents, your spouse, or your dog sending you an app (or a link to an app)—don’t download it. You might trust them completely, but you can’t be sure they’ve done their due diligence to determine what it is they’re actually sending you. All the steps you take to ensure your personal security won’t matter if you place your trust in someone who isn’t as thorough.

Sometimes, just pausing a moment to think critically can save you. In this case, would WhatsApp really release a separate app that’s a color-clone of their original app? Wouldn’t they just add that functionality into the app directly? Consider whether the mere premise of the app seems suspect before you even consider tapping on a link to download it.

However, if you did already install this one, there are a few steps you can take to mitigate the potential damage:

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One final tip, which should probably go without saying: Look at that spelling mistake—Watsapp? You never want to download an app if the alleged company offering it can’t even spell its name correctly. Sometimes an app screams “malware,” and you should listen.