Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: Israeli drone strikes town of Harouf, Nabatieh district.
Factions' statement: The attendees agreed to support and continue implementing the ceasefire agreement measures, including the withdrawal of the occupation and lifting the siege.
Factions' statement: Calling for an end to all forms of torture and violations against prisoners in occupation prisons and the necessity of obligating the occupation to do so.
Statement: The current moment is crucial, making the meeting a true turning point toward national unity in defense of our people and their right to life, dignity, and freedom.
Factions' statement: Call for an urgent meeting of all Palestinian forces and factions to agree on a national strategy.
Factions' statement: Continuing joint work to unify visions and positions to confront the challenges facing the Palestinian cause.
Statement of the factions: Emphasis on the unity of the Palestinian political system and the independent national decision.
Statement: Approval to establish an international committee to oversee the financing and implementation of the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.
Statement: The committee is responsible for managing life and services in cooperation with Arab brothers and international institutions, based on transparency and accountability.
Resistance factions' statement: Agreement to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip to a temporary Palestinian committee of independent technocrats.

Privacy concerns could have Whatsapp off UK phones soon

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: News websites
  • 8 May 2023 16:53
4 Min Read

Ministers have been told that the UK government risks sleepwalking into a conflict with WhatsApp that may result in the messaging software vanishing from the country.

  • x
  • Privacy concerns could have Whatsapp off UK phones soon
    Whatsapp logo on a smartphone. (AFP)

UK Ministers have been told that the government risks sleepwalking into a conflict with WhatsApp that may result in the messaging software vanishing from the country, with options for a peaceful resolution quickly running out.

The internet safety bill, a massive piece of legislation that will affect practically every element of online life in the UK, is at the heart of the debate. The measure, which is currently being debated in the House of Lords, has taken more than four years to develop and has included eight secretaries of state and five prime ministers. 

The law empowers Britain's Ofcom to impose obligations on social networks to utilize technology to combat terrorism or child sexual abuse content, with fines of up to 10% of worldwide revenue for non-compliance. To comply with the notice, businesses must utilize their "best endeavors" to build or source technology.

Impossible without breaching privacy

However, for messaging applications that utilize "end-to-end encryption" (E2EE) to safeguard their user data, it is technologically impossible to read user conversations without fundamentally breaching their commitments to consumers; companies claims it is a move they will not take.

“The bill provides no explicit protection for encryption,” according to a coalition of providers, including the market leaders WhatsApp and Signal, in an open letter last month, “and if implemented as written, could empower Ofcom to try to force the proactive scanning of private messages on end-to-end encrypted communication services, nullifying the purpose of end-to-end encryption as a result and compromising the privacy of all users.”

They claim that if forced to pick, they would choose to preserve the security of their non-UK users.

Related News

US court bars NSO Group from using spyware on WhatsApp

TikTok influencers fueling market for unlicensed weight-loss drugs

Read more: Apple takes a bite out of user privacy 

“Ninety-eight percent of our users are outside the UK,” chief of Whatsapp Will Cathcart, told the Guardian in March.

"They do not want us to lower the security of the product, and just as a straightforward matter, it would be an odd choice for us to choose to lower the security of the product in a way that would affect those 98% of users.”

Legislators have urged the administration to address the issues.

“These services, such as WhatsApp, will potentially leave the UK,” Claire Fox told the House of Lords last week. “This is not like threatening to storm off. It is not done in any kind of pique in that way. In putting enormous pressure on these platforms to scan communications, we must remember that they are global platforms.

“They have a system that works for billions of people all around the world. A relatively small market such as the UK is not something for which they would compromise their billions of users around the world.”

Intentional ambiguity

A Home Office spokesperson stated, “We support strong encryption, but this cannot come at cost of public safety. Tech companies have a moral duty to ensure they are not blinding themselves and law enforcement to the unprecedented levels of child sexual abuse on their platforms," adding that the bill does not ban encryption nor will it require services to weaken them.

The government's approach, according to Richard Allan, the Liberal Democrat peer who served as Meta's director of strategy for a decade until 2019, was one of "intentional ambiguity."

“They are careful to say that they have no intention of banning end-to-end encryption … but at the same time refuse to confirm that they could not do so under the new powers in the bill. This creates a high-stakes game of chicken, where the government think companies will give them more if they hold the threat of drastic technical orders over them. The government’s hope is that companies will blink first in the game of chicken and give them what they want.”

  • United Kingdom
  • Whatsapp
  • Privacy

Most Read

From previous scenes of the Qassam Brigades targeting an Israeli D9 bulldozer with a Yassin 105 shell, east of Deir al-Balah. (Military Media of the Qassam Brigades)

US knew fatal Rafah blast cause was not Hamas op., says journalist

  • Politics
  • 20 Oct 2025
'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

  • Technology
  • 24 Oct 2025
Abu Hamza, the spokesperson for the Al-Quds Brigades, during a speech televised on October 22, 2025 (Al-Quds Brigades Military Media)

Al-Quds Brigades' Abu Hamza mourns leaders, vows continued resistance

  • Politics
  • 22 Oct 2025
US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

  • Africa
  • 23 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Flags of Iran, Russia, and China (IRNA)
Politics

Russia, China, Iran send joint letter to IAEA on Resolution 2231 end

Rubio says UNRWA to play no role in Gaza aid deliveries
Politics

Rubio says UNRWA to play no role in Gaza aid deliveries

Tents are seen at UN school used as a shelter for displaced Palestinians in Khan Younis, Tuesday, September 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Politics

UN warns of 'lost generation' amid Gaza education crisis

x
Politics

White House pushes to repeal US sanctions on Syria: Report

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS