US scrutiny follows lawsuit alleging Meta access to encrypted WhatsApp messages
Claims that Meta can read private WhatsApp communications have prompted official interest in Washington, despite firm denials from the company and scepticism from security experts over the technical feasibility of the allegation.
US authorities have reportedly examined allegations that Meta can read encrypted messages sent through WhatsApp, a claim that cuts to the heart of the platform’s privacy guarantees but which the company strongly denies.
The scrutiny follows a lawsuit filed last week in the United States alleging that Meta can access the content of most WhatsApp communications, despite the service’s use of end to end encryption.
Meta is said to have dismissed the allegation as baseless, arguing that the legal action is designed to undermine WhatsApp’s successful case against NSO Group, whose Pegasus spyware has been used to target journalists and activists.
The lawsuit was lodged by Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, which says it is acting on information from unnamed whistleblowers in several countries and insists the case is unrelated to its separate work for NSO Group on appeal.
Meta reportedly responded by seeking sanctions against the firm, accusing it of filing a meritless claim for publicity and reiterating that WhatsApp messages cannot be read by the company.
Security experts have expressed scepticism, noting that any systematic access to encrypted content would be technically implausible and highly likely to have surfaced internally long before reaching court.
A professor at University College London described the allegations as unusual and said the absence of verifiable technical evidence significantly weakened their credibility.
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According to the Bloomberg report, officials at the US Department of Commerce have also played down reports of a formal investigation, calling suggestions of government findings unsubstantiated.
The dispute nonetheless highlights persistent unease about large technology platforms, where even strong encryption can coexist with extensive collection of user metadata that falls short of full privacy.
