After Iran, now Britain also filters WhatsApp, but not for the same reasons!
March 20, 1401 at 12:59
WhatsApp warned that if the online safety bill is implemented in the UK and the possibility of this messenger being filtered, it will stop its activity in this country.
WhatsApp messenger in the UK may face bans and filtering due to the online safety bill in this country that will be implemented soon. According to WhatsApp CEO Will Cathcart, the bill would force messaging apps to weaken end-to-end encryption that could compromise their security. This is a significant concern for technology companies and security experts, who are always stressing the need for end-to-end encryption of messages against hacking and other threats.
Cathcart also confirmed that if the UK government asked WhatsApp to weaken the encryption, the company would refuse to do so, which could lead to the messenger being filtered out. In addition to WhatsApp, the messaging application Signal has also criticized the new British bill and announced the possibility of leaving the UK if it receives such a request.
The end-to-end encryption feature assures messaging users that only the sender and recipient can read messages and not even services can access them. Although protecting messages from hacking and other cyber threats is essential, officials said they should be weakened to the point where messages can be scanned for illegal content.
The possibility of WhatsApp being filtered in the UK
The online safety bill presented by the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, has now been voted on in the Parliament of this country. The law would give the government the power to require messaging companies to check messages for child abuse or terrorism.
Cathcart expressed surprise at the implementation of such a policy in Britain, saying the new law did not provide any assurances that privacy would not be undermined. He added:
The experience of weakening encryption in messengers so far has not resulted in anything other than the suppression of civil liberties.
Will Whatsapp comply with UK request to weaken encryption?
Cathcart went on to say that if the British government pushes for such a change, other countries may also set their own rules on communications on various topics. Thus, when a country with liberal democratic laws intends to monitor private communications in content, other countries are encouraged to do the same.
He also stressed that even if the British government asked him to weaken WhatsApp’s encryption, he would not do so. Cathcart declined to speculate on the possibility of a WhatsApp filter in the UK, but pointed to countries that have blocked public access to the messenger, saying users can still access the app through VPNs and other technologies that bypass the restriction. Have.
To avoid the possibility of restrictions and filtering of WhatsApp in the UK, Cathcart asked the government of this country to amend the bill to include a wording that indicates that private messaging is different from other social network activities and that it is necessary to encrypt it. He said that even the British government has already commented on the importance of such a process.