WhatsApp is addressing a vast loophole that exists in its end-to-end encryption feature that protects your chats. To better protect your data, the text messaging app adds an extra layer of protection to help keep you and your data safe.
In addition, WhatsApp also announced it would give you the option to fully encrypt your message backups, making your chats unreadable by both WhatsApp and third-party cloud services.
This comes at a time when government entities around the world pose a threat to the safety of users' online data, making this a significant move by WhatsApp. This article will cover how WhatsApp's new end-to-end encryption feature works and why it is vital for your online security.
WhatsApp Will Let You Fully Encrypt Your Message Backups
WhatsApp is adding an extra layer to its end-to-end encryption to improve the security of your chats on the messaging app.
WhatsApp has already been protecting your messages through end-to-end encryption for years. However, until now, you had had no option but to store your chat backup to a third-party app (such as iCloud or Google Drive) in an unencrypted format. Unfortunately, as you might have guessed, this isn't the safest option for your data.
Now, to address this safety concern, WhatsApp is giving you the option to encrypt backups using end-to-end encryption. This will secure the backups you upload to Google Drive or Apple iCloud, making them unreadable without an encryption key.
That means that if you choose to enable end-to-end encrypted backups for your chats, neither WhatsApp nor the backup service provider will be able to access your backup or your backup encryption key.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the feature in a post on his profile:
WhatsApp is the first global messaging service at this scale to offer end-to-end encrypted messaging and backups, and getting there was a really hard technical challenge that required an entirely new framework for key storage and cloud storage across operating systems.
How the Encryption Works
This new feature for end-to-end encryption backups is made possible by a new encryption key storage system that works with both iOS and Android. If you decide to opt-in, you will be asked to generate a unique, 64-digit encryption key or create a password.
You can store that key offline or in a password manager of your choosing, or you can create a password that backs up your encryption key in a cloud-based backup key vault that WhatsApp has developed for this purpose. WhatsApp will not know your password, and you cannot use your key without it.
Essentially, WhatsApp is giving you the option to encrypt your backups before they head to the cloud backups you use. The cloud will know that it is protecting your data, but it will not know exactly what it is protecting as it will not have access to your chats.
To further secure your data, WhatsApp will make your key "permanently inaccessible" should you input too many incorrect passwords in one attempt.
How to Fully Encrypt Your Message Backups on WhatsApp
If you opt-in to use the new encryption feature, WhatsApp will encrypt your chats—including your messages, media, and all your WhatsApp data—with a unique key that is generated on your device. You can either secure that key with a password or do it manually with a 64-digit encryption key.
WhatsApp will store your key in a backup key vault that is inaccessible to neither WhatsApp nor Apple or Google. The key can only be unlocked using your password, which gives you access to your chat backups. You can also choose to manage the key yourself if you remember the password.
Why WhatsApp's New Encryption Feature Is Important
The lack of security on social media apps has been an ongoing issue, so it is no surprise that some companies seek solutions to protect their users' data from insecure dominant cloud providers. But why is WhatsApp adding an extra layer of protection over your chats so important?
WhatsApp's encryption of your messages means that it can't see them at any point, so they are safe. However, the problem arises when you back up your messages and other data to iCloud or Google Cloud, which are not end-to-end encrypted. This means, for instance, that Apple or Google could hand your data over to law enforcement if requested.
WhatsApp also wants to ensure that your ability to retrieve your end-to-end encrypted backup and decrypt your chat history would remain intact should a data center or any one of the elements that help to keep the data center up and running be hit in any way.
For instance, WhatsApp duplicates your key in backup key vaults across five data centers in different geographical locations to ensure you can still access your chats even if one of the data centers may experience an outage.
Furthermore, in adding this extra layer of protection, WhatsApp is taking your security a step further than Apple, which holds the keys to encrypted backups of your iMessages—defeating the purpose of protecting your chats in the first place.
WhatsApp Is Addressing an Ongoing Need for Online Security
It Is no secret that online security is one of the biggest concerns for social media users today. In upgrading its end-to-end encryption by giving you the option to add an additional layer of protection, WhatsApp is doing its part to ensure that your data is safe so you can rest assured that no one has access to your data.
As the concern over our data and the conversations around online security will continue for years, one can only hope that more companies will stand up against government entities seeking access to users' data.
And as technology continues to develop and improve, perhaps more companies will find solutions to close existing loopholes and keep users' data safe.