WhatsApp is undoubtedly the best and the most popular instant messaging app for both Android and iOS. On the other hand, Instagram surpassed Facebook and became the most used social network. However, Facebook owns both WhatsApp and Instagram, and now, reportedly, the Zuckerberg’s company wants to unify WhatsApp and Instagram under Facebook Messenger.
While the idea to create a unified instant messaging app by merging WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook Messenger is not surprising since Facebook owns all of the before-mentioned apps, that might cause serious privacy issues for users. The problems might occur from the struggle to implement end-to-end encryption to the resulting app which would contain three different applications.
Among the three apps mentioned above, only WhatsApp enjoys end-to-end encryption, so, both Instagram and Facebook Messenger do not encrypt users’ messages. “Will the new platform impose default end-to-end encryption for all users regardless of which service they are actually using?” asked Davey Winder of the Forbes.
WhatsApp and Instagram Unification Under Facebook Messenger To Cause Serious Privacy Issues for Users
To unify WhatsApp and Instagram under Facebook Messenger and add end-to-end encryption to the resulting platform “is harder to achieve, at least in a way that could be thought of as being secure, than it sounds. Or at least it will be unless the plan is to completely re-engineer all three messaging services from the ground up,” Winder said on Forbes.
Now, more cybersecurity experts complained about the Zuckerberg’s decision to unite WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook Messenger into one big instant messaging platform. “Architecting early is easier than bolting features on artificially and messily later. At the very least, Mr. Zuckerberg should take advantage of the situation by leaning forward with a plan for privacy and be a hero instead of later suffering the consequences,” said Sam Curry, the chief security officer at Cybereason.
“This move [WhatsApp and Instagram unification under Facebook Messenger] could potentially be good or bad for security/privacy. But given recent history and financial motivations of Facebook, I wouldn’t bet my lunch money on good,” stated Matthew Green, a highly-respected cryptographer, on Twitter.
