Facebook Messenger now has default end-to-end encryption for enhanced security.
Meta Platforms has finally delivered on its commitment to implement default end-to-end encryption for private conversations and calls on Facebook Messenger. The company claims that this encryption ensures that only the sender and receiver can view the message’s content. Originally introduced as an optional feature in 2016, end-to-end encryption for personal chats and calls will now be the norm, signifying a major achievement following a lengthy development period.
Comprehensive renovation
Loredana Crisan, vice president of Messenger, said, “This has been years in the making because we’ve taken our time to get this right.” A team of engineers, cryptographers, designers, policy experts, and product managers worked diligently to comprehensively rebuild Messenger’s features.
Maintaining user experience
Despite the encryption change, Crisan assured users that popular Messenger features such as themes and custom reactions will remain intact. However, he cautioned that it may take some time for all Messenger chats to switch to default encryption.
Group chats and Instagram integration
While this step is a positive one, The Verge notes that end-to-end encryption in group Messenger chats is still optional. In addition, the default encryption has not yet expanded to Instagram messages, although Meta had previously announced its implementation shortly after private Messenger conversations.
In 2019, CEO Mark Zuckerberg outlined the company’s intention to adopt encrypted ephemeral messages in its messaging apps. In a Facebook post, Zuckerberg wrote: “I believe the future of communication will increasingly shift to private, encrypted services.”
Enabling default encryption means Meta cannot see the content of most Messenger conversations and cannot hand them over to law enforcement. This change comes as a result of a high-profile incident in which law enforcement obtained Messenger chat history as part of a criminal investigation. Despite concerns from opponents of encryption about the challenges it poses to identifying bad actors, Meta remains committed to improving user privacy on its messaging platforms.
