Russian government hackers targeting Signal and WhatsApp users, Dutch spies warn

Dutch intelligence agencies (MIVD and AIVD) have warned of a large-scale global hacking campaign by Russian state actors targeting Signal and WhatsApp users, particularly government officials, military personnel, and journalists. The attackers use phishing and social engineering rather than malware. On Signal, hackers impersonate support staff to steal verification and PIN codes, then register a new device to hijack the account. On WhatsApp, they abuse the 'Linked devices' feature via malicious QR codes or links, potentially gaining access to past messages without locking out the victim. Neither Signal nor Meta commented on the campaign.