Iranian hackers target WhatsApp accounts of Biden and Trump's associates: Meta

Social media heavyweight Meta has blamed an Iranian hacker group for attempts to access the WhatsApp accounts of a series of diplomatic and political figures in the United States.

The company — which runs Facebook and Instagram along with messaging service WhatsApp — said the known APT42 group was to blame, adding that WhatsApp had suspended a small number of accounts to counter the hacking attempt.

“This malicious activity originated in Iran and attempted to target individuals in Israel, Palestine, Iran, the United States and the UK,” the company said in a statement.

Meta said the targets were politicians and diplomats and included officials “associated with the administrations of President Biden and former President Trump.” The APT42 group, which is also known as Mint Sandstorm, has also been blamed for previous hacking attempts by Meta, along with Microsoft and Google.