In a significant cybercrime incident, the WhatsApp account of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan was compromised, with fraudsters impersonating him to solicit money from his contacts. The breach occurred around 11 a.m., after which his WhatsApp was deleted from his phone.
Barrister Gohar warned the public to disregard any money transfer requests originating from his number. He has contacted the Federal Investigation Agency’s Cyber Crime Wing and emphasized that his number remains active and vulnerable to further misuse. He called for urgent measures to prevent exploitation of his personal data.
Meanwhile, the frequency of WhatsApp hacking incidents has escalated across Pakistan in recent months, affecting hundreds of users and triggering national alerts. In January, the National Cyber Emergency Response Team issued a nationwide advisory highlighting a surge in account hijackings. The advisory noted that attackers predominantly rely on social engineering tactics rather than exploiting technical vulnerabilities within the app.
Common methods include deceiving users into sharing one-time passcodes (OTPs), altering call-forwarding settings, distributing phishing links, and using malicious QR codes that connect victims’ accounts to attackers’ devices. Once an account is compromised, it is exploited to impersonate the victim, defraud contacts, access private messages, and disseminate harmful content.
