WhatsApp Boosts Privacy with Stronger Encryption
The Android version of popular messaging app WhatsApp now supports end-to-end encryption, thanks to a partnership with secure-messaging developer Open Whisper Systems. Now, when Android users of the app message each other, the messages are encrypted before they leave the user's smartphone, and only decrypted once they are received by their intended recipients.
Messages with end-to-end encryption can't even be read by the company doing the sending — in this case, WhatsApp and its parent company, Facebook. With iOS and other platform support coming soon, it's a big privacy increase for WhatsApp and its more than 600 million users.
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Open Whisper Systems is a group of developers who create open-source encryption and communication software such as Android app TextSecure, which integrates end-to-end encryption with the phone's SMS and MMS messaging. WhatsApp's own end-to-end encryption is based on TextSecure's encryption protocol. It's also enabled by default, ensuring that anyone who received the update is automatically protected.
As an open-source project, TextSecure's source code is available online for review and modification on GitHub.
WhatsApp isn't the first messaging app to implement end-to-end encryption. Other apps that have it include Wickr, CryptoCat, Silent Text, iMessage and Open Whisper Systems' own apps TextSecure, Signal and RedPhone.
Privacy advocacy group the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) recently released a scorecard in which it assessed 39 messaging apps on their basic cryptographic practices, citing seven specific criteria. TextSecure, Signal and RedPhone were among the few to meet all seven criteria. WhatsApp met only two of the seven at the time; now it should meet a third.
Jill Scharr is a staff writer for Tom's Guide, where she regularly covers security, 3D printing and video games. You can follow Jill on Twitter @JillScharr and on Google+. Follow us @tomsguide, on Facebook and on Google+.
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