On June 23, the US House of Representatives banned the use of WhatsApp on government smartphones, labeling it a WhatsApp security risk, and Iran’s state media also encouraged the public to delete the app, citing data concerns, marking a rare alignment of two rival regimes.
It’s confusing how big global powers US and Iran are never on the same page, but both have raised the alarm about WhatsApp removal. The concerns are all about the privacy of users, online security, and the potential misuse of private data, landing WhatsApp in another round of global criticism.
WhatsApp Growing Backlash
Meta’s chat app is under increasing pressure from governments worldwide to adjust its security features. This week, it was labeled a WhatsApp security risk by the US House of Representatives and Iran’s state media, both of which had competing, but serious concerns about safety on the platform.
The US House officially banned WhatsApp from all government-owned devices to protect user data, a memo first reported by Axios and confirmed by Reuters stated. The ban extends to phones, desktops, and even web-based editions used by staff.
“A high risk to users due to the lack of transparency in how it protects user data, the absence of stored data encryption, and potential security risks involved with its use”, The House’s Office of Cybersecurity, under the Chief Administrative Office (CAO) cited, according to Reuters.
In this situation, the CAO recommended app removal and urged more secure alternatives such as Signal, Microsoft Teams, Apple’s iMessage and FaceTime. Employees were also warned not to fall prey to phishing attempts and spurious messages from numbers they did not know.
Meta Pushes Back on Allegations
Meta has strongly resisted the move.
“We disagree with the House Chief Administrative Officer’s characterization in the strongest possible terms,” Meta Spokesman Andy Stone said.
Stone defended WhatsApp’s inherent privacy feature, proving that messages are locked with WhatsApp E2E encryption by default, which means they can only be read by the sender and recipient.
This is a higher level of security than most of the apps on the CAO’s approved list that do not offer that protection,” he reaffirmed.
However, this assurance has not stopped US nor Iran officials from watching over malicious tracking WhatsApp actions. It was reported early in the year that WhatsApp was a tool for Israeli spyware company Paragon Solutions to exploit and target journalists and civil society players. Similarly, in Iran, where the app is widely used, state media called for people to delete it, speculating without concrete evidence that it was transmitting sensitive information to Israel.
The broadcast quoted officials as saying that the app might be harvesting user data and sending it to foreign entities, a claim denied completely by Meta.
These growing issues have led more to ask: can WhatsApp be tracked, and how secure is it, then? Although no definitive proof has emerged of backdoors or blanket surveillance, the sequence of official warnings indicates underlying issues of trust.
With its encryption rules and all promises, Meta’s app continues to be criticized when it comes to WhatsApp security issues, especially where governments are concerned that the vulnerabilities might surpass the benefits. As the examination escalates, so does the challenge for Meta to protect users’ data and rebuild trust in one of the world’s best-used messaging apps.
Meta, it seems like it’s time to bury the WhatsApp security risk controversy.
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