US House of Representatives bans WhatsApp on official devices: reasons revealed
Kyiv • UNN
The US House of Representatives banned the use of WhatsApp on government devices starting June 30 due to privacy risks and a lack of transparency regarding data protection. Meta, the company that owns the messenger, disagrees with this decision, emphasizing end-to-end encryption of messages and a higher level of security compared to other permitted applications.
The US House of Representatives has banned the use of the WhatsApp messenger on government devices due to privacy risks. This was reported by UNN citing the Financial Times.
Details
According to an official memorandum reviewed by the Financial Times, House Chief Administrative Officer Catherine Szpindor announced restrictions on the use of WhatsApp on government laptops and phones starting June 30.
The memo states that the ban was introduced due to "a lack of transparency regarding how (WhatsApp, - ed.) protects user data, the absence of encryption for stored data, and potential security risks associated with its use."
House employees are instructed to delete the application if it is already installed and not to install it in the future.
Catherine Szpindor emphasized the importance of protecting sensitive information.
Protecting the House of Representatives is our top priority, and we are always monitoring and analyzing potential cybersecurity risks that could jeopardize the data of House members and their staff
She added that such measures are part of a regular audit of digital tools.
We regularly review the list of applications approved by the House of Representatives and make changes to it if we deem it necessary
Currently, the list of approved applications includes Microsoft Teams, Signal, iMessage, Apple's FaceTime, and Amazon-owned Wickr.
Meta's Position
Meta, which owns WhatsApp, sharply criticized the US Congress's position.
We most strongly disagree with this characterization
They emphasized that the messenger meets high security standards.
WhatsApp messages are end-to-end encrypted by default
He added that "this means that neither the company nor third parties can read them" and that "the platform offers a higher level of security than most applications on the list approved by the CAO."
The company also emphasized that WhatsApp is allowed for official use in the US Senate.
Reference
Meta acquired WhatsApp in 2014 for $19 billion. One of its co-founders, Brian Acton, left the company in 2017 due to disagreements over privacy policy. He later co-founded a competitor – the Signal messenger.
Recall
Meta is increasingly cooperating with the US military. In November, the company allowed the military to use its Llama artificial intelligence, and last month announced a partnership with the defense company Anduril in the field of mixed reality.
In addition, Meta's Chief Technology Officer Andrew Bosworth stated that he accepted the military rank of lieutenant colonel in the new US Army Reserve Executive Innovation Corps.
