WhatsApp says it would exit the UK if forced to lower security standards
WhatsApp says it would walk away and stop providing services in the UK if the government tries to weaken its encrypted-messaging system.
The instant messaging platform, used by 70% of online adults in the UK, believes it would set a bad precedent if a liberal democracy could lower security to root out malicious content.
The government claims loosening encrypted messaging standards on apps like WhatsApp will help to improve child safety and that a delicate balance between that objective and user privacy is viable.
The new Online Safety Bill now makes it a legal requirement for social media and messaging platforms to identify and disrupt any form of child sexual abuse.
However, WhatsApp head Will Cathcart says weakening end-to-end encryption is not the answer as it could have a domino effect and force other countries to follow suit.
He added: “Our users all around the world want security – 98% of our users are outside the UK, they do not want us to lower the security of the product.”
Rival app, Signal, has also stated that it would rather leave the UK market than be forced to scan users’ messages.
End-to-end encryption is one of the most secure communication methods as it effectively scrambles each message so it cannot be read, even by hosting services.
Open Rights Group campaigner, Dr. Monica Horten, says any changes could turn apps into a “mass-surveillance tool” for governments.
But the stand-off highlights the importance of child safety, which is at risk amid a surge in the number of grooming and abuse images uploaded online.