A 10-month Commerce Department probe concluded Meta could view all WhatsApp messages in unencrypted form

  • floofloof@lemmy.ca
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    3 hours ago

    “The claim that WhatsApp can access people’s encrypted communications is patently false,” Meta spokesperson Andy Stone said. He added that the bureau had already “disavowed this purported investigation, calling its own employee’s allegations unsubstantiated.”

    I can’t help but notice that in response to people’s concern that Meta may be able to read people’s messages, the Meta spokesperson responds that WhatsApp can’t read them. A little bit of administrative juggling on Meta’s end so that the team with access to the messages doesn’t fall within the WhatsApp department, and both claims could be true.

    • IratePirate@feddit.org
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      53 minutes ago

      But Facebook/“Meta” would never lie.

      Oopsie! Hang on, they even lie to lawmakers in case buying them off fails? Bummer!

      Seriously: this company needs to be scoured from the face of the earth.

    • FauxLiving@lemmy.world
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      2 hours ago

      Yeah, there are lots of ways for this to be true but misleading:

      The communications are not encrypted if they have the keys.

      The encrypted communications are not the people’s. By the TOS everything is the property of WhatsApp and they can access their own ‘Business Records’ perfectly legally.

      A third party, like a federal agency, isn’t WhatsApp. (WhatsApp can also voluntarily give their ‘Business Records’ to said agencies without warrant or subpoena.)

      Meta isn’t WhatsApp.

      An internal project with an undisclosed codename isn’t WhatsApp.

    • Lost_My_Mind@lemmy.world
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      3 hours ago

      C’mon. It’s not that hard. You’re making the assumption that Andy Stone is telling the truth, with a gotchya astrict.

      What if…the big business just…LIES???

      • illi@piefed.social
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        2 hours ago

        The best lies have some kind of truth in them. Half truths are way more effective than complete falsehoods.

        • Lost_My_Mind@lemmy.world
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          2 hours ago

          In what world do you live where billionsires face actual consequences?

          Worst case scenario, Meta pays a small fine, and doesn’t even blink. The day just goes on.

          • NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io
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            1 hour ago

            I mean yeah, but they’d usually not pay even a small fine (or pay for legal proceedings), so it’s a lot more efficient to use conveniently placed loopholes.