Meta Has Been Sued Over Questions About Whether WhatsApp Actually Encrypts Your Messages.
Shortly after Meta (then Facebook) acquired WhatsApp in 2014, the company promised to introduce a feature surprisingly uncommon for Facebook: end-to-end encryption. This move was supposed to be a boon for privacy, ensuring that no one but the recipient and you could see your messages. Even now, WhatsApp’s website claims, “No one outside the chat, not even WhatsApp, can read, listen to, or share [your messages].” However, a new lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco argues otherwise.
According to Bloomberg , an international group of plaintiffs has filed a lawsuit against Meta, claiming the app’s claims of end-to-end encryption are false. The lawsuit alleges that Meta and WhatsApp “store, analyze, and can access virtually all of WhatsApp users’ supposedly ‘private’ communications.”
The plaintiffs include users from Australia, Brazil, India, Mexico, and South Africa, represented by lawyers from several firms. The charges name “whistleblowers” who helped uncover this information, but nothing further is known at this time.
When I reached out to Meta for comment, the company categorically denied the allegations. The company called the lawsuit “baseless,” assuring users that WhatsApp uses the open-source Signal protocol for encryption and adding that “any claim that users’ messages on WhatsApp are not encrypted is categorically false and absurd.”
If the lawsuit is upheld, it could affect billions of users worldwide. The plaintiffs’ lawyers are asking the court to declare the class action admissible.
Meanwhile, WhatsApp is far from the only option for encrypted messaging . While it’s unclear how the lawsuit will play out, those looking to switch apps should consider alternatives like Signal or Viber. It’s worth noting that some apps, like Telegram, offer end-to-end encryption, but it’s not enabled by default . (Personally, I use Line for its anime stickers.)