VIRUS HITS INDIAN KOO APP AS BUHARI, SUPPORTERS CONTINUE MASS EXODUS FROM TWITTER

Indian copycat version of Twitter, Koo, has recently been ravaged by a virus that could have exposed its hundreds of users to attacks across the platform.

The virus was discovered by security researcher Rahul Kankrale in July, and Prasoon Gupta, an independent security researcher.

In an interview with The Hacker News, Mr Gupta explained that the virus came from the way Koo processes access tokens when a user's profile is verified through the one-time password (OTP) sent to their phone numbers.

The virus allows malicious scripts to be embedded directly into the application. This way, an attacker can perform actions on behalf of users such as accessing wreb browser cookies.

This also means that hackers could place sensitive data such as private messages, or spread misinformation, or display spam using users' profiles.

This virus stands to affect the accounts of top government functionaries, presidential aides agencies, and other pro-government individuals taken to Koo.

Koo, launched in November 2019, positioned itself as a government friendly alternative to Twitter after the Buhari regime indefinitely banned Twitter for deleting a tweet by the president threatening to punish secessionists in the South-East region of the country.

The Buhari regime's adoption of the social media app has boosted Koo standings, with the platform recently featuring Mr Buhari in its advertisements, claiming to offer exclusive access to Nigeria's president.