NEWS FLASH: WhatApp could very soon become an illegal in India.
The reason for the outlawing of the most famous messenger app on the planet, is simply down to its latest update, which allows end-to-end encryption for all chats worldwide.
The founders of WhatsApp recently announced that due to this new feature, nobody outside of the message will be able to read the message.
The idea is simple: when you send a message, the only person who can read it is the person or group chat that you send that message to. No one can see inside that message. Not cybercriminals. Not hackers. Not oppressive regimes. Not even us. End-to-end encryption helps make communication via WhatsApp private – sort of like a face-to-face conversation.”
Now, this new feature sounds great for the billion users worldwide as far as privacy is concerned, however in India, it’s a very different story. This kind of encryption actually violates the country’s attempts to investigate and detect terrorists. In the past, similar technologies have also proved problematic with India’s Government, simply for the reason of encryptions.
In 2010, the Government threatened to ban BlackBerry due to its encrypted messenger and mail service. As a result, the creator had to set up local servers in India to reduce the issue. The servers were installed in Bombay in 2012.
In 2015, Government workers were forbidden to use private couriers such as Gmail or Yahoo for official correspondence, and in 2014, the Indian Air Force also banned its employees using Chinese mobile devices (as they could have possibly been used for spying).
So, could WhatsApp be in a similar sticky situation?Will it be tailored to meet the requirements of the Indian Government, or will the Facebook-owned app simply have to sacrifice this (huge) market?
