Attention, this WhatsApp 'black dot' message crashes android phones
New Delhi : Users of WhatsApp, the world's most popular messaging app, need to be careful when receiving messages. A new ‘bug’ is being forwarded via WhatApp messages which can crash not just the app but also your entire Android handset. The message contains a code which when tapped, overloads WhatsApp and even the OS, resulting in a bomb crash.
WhatApp, now-a-days is a popular home to spam and malware. "As with any message bomb, it involves sending and receiving a specially crafted message with hidden symbols in between spaces. Tapping on a portion of the text will basically make the app 'expand' the hidden symbols, potentially overloading the app and even the OS," SlashGear reported. Such “message bombs" are not new and not limited to Android. Even iMessage is not protected to bugs that could send the app crashing.
Report confirms that there appears to be two variants of such kind of WhatApp message being forwarded. One involves an ominous black dot that comes with a warning on what will happen if you tap on it which most curious users will do anyway and face the blast.
Another "message bomb" cause the messaging platform to crash with "nefarious, looks too innocent" and does not come with a warning. The kind of message includes special characters that do not display visibly but are used to change text behaviour. An unnecessary amount of these invisible symbols causes WhatsApp to freeze.
It is likely that such kind of message bombs is a part of WhatsApp plans to add new features to the instant messenger, including playing Facebook and Instagram videos in picture-in-picture mode. As of now, the officials at this Facebook-owned company have not made comments on this potentially trouble making bugs.