What do you do if your WhatsApp account is stolen?

I receive a lot of questions from people whose WhatsApp accounts have been stolen, and the hacker sends messages to contacts and groups, asking for sums of money, or a direct debit card to buy things online and so on.
At the outset, let us know how accounts are mainly controlled?
The only way to hack any WhatsApp account is through the code sent via text message to the registered phone number. The hacker makes every effort to obtain the code. They usually resort to the accounts of people you know that have been hacked, and they tell you that there is a useful group for such and such, we want you to enter with us, then they ask you to send the code sent in a text message to join. Some person without focus sends the code to him.
Sometimes they send you via Twitter, or any other means, there are a lot of ways they use to access the verification code, in different and strange ways.
The weakest point is always the person. There is no way to activate the WhatsApp account except by obtaining the code sent by a text message, and there is still no loophole to activate the account in another way, as far as I know.
What to do if the account has been hacked?
If you notice that your account has been hacked, you must first find a way to tell your friends and family that your account is hacked, that everything you send is not from you, and that they do not respond to any requests.
After that, try to activate your account in the known way, open WhatsApp, then confirm your phone number, enter the code sent to you.
If the account is activated, then you are on the right path, you must immediately enable two-step verification from the WhatsApp settings.
In case your account is not activated, it is possible that due to the number of activation attempts, WhatsApp has temporarily disabled verification requests. This usually takes several hours.
But if you are asked for the two-step verification number and you did not activate it previously, this means that the hacker has activated the verification. Therefore, you will have to wait 7 days, in order to be able to reactivate your account. Once the account is activated after this period, the other person will be removed from your account even if they have enabled verification. Or you can contact WhatsApp support for assistance in recovering the account.
Important notes:
* WhatsApp uses full encryption, so the hacker can never see your previous messages, but he will be able to see groups, shared contacts, and more.
* If you receive a message requesting sums of money, private data, contact the person concerned to make sure, do not rely on anything textual in these matters. Always make sure and be careful, no matter who the sender is, even if it's the people closest to you.
* Do not send any verification code or link to anyone who received you via text message, regardless of the justifications presented to you.
* Do not delete WhatsApp if it is hacked, deletion will not do you any good, but all your messages may be deleted, if you do not have a backup copy.
* There is a link that reaches you with the code for quick activation, this link works exactly as the activation code, do not send it to anyone by any means, and do not believe the story of joining groups.
* It is necessary to enable two-step verification to add another layer of protection to your account, you can find the option in the security settings in WhatsApp.