Some Android WhatsApp users are victims of a bug that activates the microphone without their permission even when their smartphone is not active. According to the application of Meta, the problem would come directly from the operating system of Google.
Meta’s famous instant messenger has been enhanced with new features in recent weeks. The most notable is the one that allows you to connect to WhatsApp from several smartphones. At the same time, a thorny issue plagues some Android users. The app would activate their smartphone’s microphone behind their back.
“WhatsApp was using the microphone back–plan, while I slept and since I woke up at 6am. What is going on ?” asks engineer Foad Dabiri, taking a screenshot of Android’s privacy dashboard. His tweet, which went viral, particularly caught the attention of Elon Musk. Suspicious, the billionaire has long recommended using Signal instead of WhatsApp.
To read > WhatsApp will stop working on these Android smartphones, are you affected?
WhatsApp: why the microphone is activated without the approval of users?
Faced with these supposed abuses, Musk has given a layer.“WhatsApp cannot be trusted”, he lamented, quoting the whistleblower’s tweet. Regularly accused of violating the confidentiality of users, Meta tried to extinguish the controversy in stride.
Defending itself from any espionage, the company estimated that the problem came from Android. A flaw in the privacy dashboard allegedly caused WhatsApp to report false microphone usage. “We believe this is a bug on Android that incorrectly assigns information in their privacy dashboard and have asked Google to investigate and fix the issue,” says WhatsApp.
And the application to ensure that its users have “full control over their mic settings”. “Once granted, WhatsApp only accesses the mic when a user makes a call or records a voice note or video – and even then those communications are protected by end-to-end encryption so that WhatsApp can’t hear them”emphasizes WhatsApp.
“We are aware of the issue and are working closely with WhatsApp to investigate”says a Google spokesperson.
