As first reported by The Financial Times, a security breach was found within WhatsApp that potentially allowed hackers to remotely install surveillance software on both iPhone and Android phones using the app.

The fix? WhatsApp, whose parent company Facebook has faced its own share of data breaches, is urging its 1.5 billion users worldwide to upgrade to the latest version of the software immediately, but so far has offered few details on the number of potential users affected.

The holiday season is behind us and gift return season is ramping up. You may have already been concerned about identity theft while doing your holiday shopping, but you might want to hold onto that caution if you’re returning unwanted gifts.

Return fraud is a huge issue in retail, and in an effort to protect themselves, stores will often request a driver’s license or government ID for returns without a receipt. This becomes even more common after the holidays, when customers are likely to say they don’t have a receipt for a gift they received.

Identity theft is a big issue, and every single person is at risk. Last year’s Equifax hack showed just how easy it is for criminals to gain access to personal information en masse.

With the ever-increasing number of corporate data breaches, identity theft can happen to anyone at any time – even after they die. But some people are more likely than others to become victims of this devastating crime.

For example, when you experience a major life event that requires filing official paperwork – buying or selling real estate, marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, starting new job, etc. –  your sensitive personal information gets entered into all kinds of databases.  This gives hackers more opportunities to find an access point and steal your identity.

Data breaches can expose passwords, email addresses, credit card information, home addresses, phone numbers, and more, depending on the severity of the attack. All of this can be used to steal your identity, so it’s important to pay attention to every data breach that hits the news.