WhatsApp Download

At least once a week, the developers of WhatsApp roll out a new updated version of the app, and obviously it is advisable to keep your device updated. As you know, one of the many advantages of WhatsApp is that it can be installed on almost any smartphone or mobile device for free. So you can use it with an iPhone, with Windows Phones and so on.

Android users are the majority, for this reason this is the platform that is updated more often. And today we are going to talk about the new 2.16.218 Beta version of WhatsApp for Android devices that has just been released. This latest 2.16.218 APK file has been decreased by 1554KB, and see the addiction of a new Google and Maven icon. Furthermore, 217 files have been deleted and other 830 have been modified.

This new 2.16.218 APK contains also 24 new files, and 20 of them are related to Google services icons and files for handling. Unfortunately, this latest Beta doesn’t add any new features, but, as usual, brings bug fixes and performance improvements. Also, still no signs of the much awaited Video Calling feature. That said, let’s see how to install this latest WhatsApp update on your Android device.

This latest Beta can be downloaded from the Google Play Store, but it is available only for Beta tester. What does it mean? It means that if you want to download it from the official Android Store, you need to become a Beta tester. The procedure is neither difficult nor long. You simply have to open the browser that you usually use on your Android device and open this page and select “BECOME A TESTER”.

At this point you can open the Google Play store and download this latest 2.16.218 APK of WhatsApp for Android devices. Of course there is the risk to encounter some problems or bugs. In this case you need to report them to the developers so they can solve these issues before the release of the next stable version of the app.

Here we are, in the middle of the summer, with a security alert for WhatsApp users. Just a few days ago, we reported the claims of a security expert, who has stated that he was able to find a breach in the security system of WhatsApp. In fact, according to Jonathan Zdziarski (that’s the name of this digital security expert): “The latest version of the app tested leaves forensic trace of all of your chats, even after you’ve deleted, cleared, or archived them… even if you ‘Clear All Chats … In fact, the only way to get rid of them appears to be to delete the app entirely.”

As if it wasn’t enough, today we have another warning coming from a UAE-based non-profit online safety organisation called E-SAFE (Emirates Safer Internet Society). The organisation has warned app users that hackers need only 30 seconds to access into instant messaging apps such as WhatsApp. To prove their thesis, the E-SAFE team has also provided a live demo during a Press conference.

The organisation conducted also a survey, with surprising results. According to this latest E-SAFE research, about 77 per cent of the app users never log out of the WhatsApp-Web (the option that enables users to use WhatsApp through their PC) and about 88 per cent of WhatsApp users let their family members access their phone unattended, while another 22 per cent of users said that they allow their friends to use their devices.

The organisation is convinced that especially WhatsApp-Web is at risk. Al Hashemi from E-SAFE explained: “Once an intruder is in contact with a phone, he can access all content on WhatsApp by scanning the phone’s QR code on a computer through the online WhatsApp site. After the QR code is scanned, the intruder can send messages to all contacts and delete messages from contacts on the app,” .

To solve the issue, the E-SAFE team has also contacted WhatsApp Inc. On the matter, Mohammad Mustafa Saidalavi, founder and chief operating officer of E-SAFE, said that “We have contacted them to urge the app’s makers to introduce a safety notification feature that informs users whenever their WhatsApp account is accessed from any web service,”. For the moment, the only possible reasonable solutions seem to be: not to leave your phones unattended and, once you finish to use it, log out from WhatsApp Web.

Another update is available for WhatsApp users. Despite the summer and recent news about flaws in its security system, WhatsApp’s developers are still regularly updating this popular instant messaging app. Even if Android users are the majority, the other platforms supporting the app such as Windows Phone and iPhone, are often updated as well. So WhatsAppers can serenely choose the version they prefer.

Today’s post is for Android users, who will be able update their device with the latest 2.16.216 Beta version of the app. Unfortunately this latest version doesn’t add any new feature, but instead it comes with important bug fixes and performance improvements. So if you are an avid WhatsApp user, we strongly recommend you to install this new update on your Android device.

As we said, this latest 2.16.216 version of WhatsApp for Android devices is still a Beta, which means that only those of you who are part of the Beta Program will be able to download it directly from the Google Play Store. It is absolutely not difficult to be a Beta Tester, so if you wish to become one, you simply have to go to this page  and tap on the “BECOME A TESTER” button. Once you are officially a Beta Tester, you will finally be able to open the Android Store and install this latest 2.16.216 version of WhatsApp on your Android device.

But don’t worry, because if you don’t want to become a registered user but still want to download WhatsApp updates, you have another option. The alternative is to download the updates manually going to whatsapp.com/android. In this case, it is very important that before the download you enable the “Unknown Sources” option.

So it’s really not difficult to keep your Android device updated. But if the work of WhatsApp’s developers is fundamental, It is also very precious the contribution given by Beta Testers, who report any bugs or malfunctioning in order to have them fixed.

A shocking announcement  is causing great concern among WhatsApp users. According to a security expert, the famous “end-to-end” encryption system that has been added into WhatsApp earlier this year, is not so secure, and in fact he was able to find a breach in the system. In case you don’t remember (or didn’t pay attention), “end-to-end” encryption is a security feature which should guarantee that private messages exchanged among WhatsApp users are safe. So, what’s happened?

Last Thursday, July 28, Jonathan Zdziarski (a digital security expert) published an article where he states that WhatsApp’ “Clear All Chats” feature does not really delete users’ messages. That’s what he wrote: “The latest version of the app tested leaves forensic trace of all of your chats, even after you’ve deleted, cleared, or archived them… even if you ‘Clear All Chats … In fact, the only way to get rid of them appears to be to delete the app entirely.”

Zdziarski extensively explains on his blog what he discovered, giving details of the procedure that he has used. Basically, he has used an iPhone to start several conversations with his account and then he started to delete, archive and clear some of them. Once he finished, the astounding revelation: the messages that he had previously cleared, still appeared in SQLite relational database management system. What does it mean? That the messages were not deleted.

According to Zdziarski, this is what happens: every time that an iPhone user makes a backup on iCloud and on a desktop computer, also the chat’s database gets copied. What is the risk? First of all that a hacker could be able to create a backup of the chat information and access private messages. For the moment, the only solution that Zdziarski  was able to find in order to delete WhatsApp chat messages, is basically to uninstall the application on your devices.

What if you really need to use WhatsApp? Nowadays this popular instant messaging app is used not only to get in touch with your loved ones, but often for work reasons. Zdziarski suggests to use iTunes choosing a complex backup password or, alternatively, he suggests to lock your smartphone using a tool called Configurator.

What will happen to WhatsApp now? Needless to say that now everybody’s wondering how this latest revelation will affect the future of this Facebook-owned app, which is now the most successful app around the world, with over 1 billion active monthly users.