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WhatsApp is fighting For the privacy of citizens of the world’s largest democracy.This week, the Facebook-owned messaging platform Sued the Indian government to challenge new IT rules that require messaging applications to track the “first originator” of a message.Doing so may require WhatsApp to weaken it End-to-end encryption, Revealing the identity of the sender may not only affect the security of more than 400 million users in India, but also the security of billions of users worldwide.
Although it is difficult to assess the possible outcome of the lawsuit, it may determine the type of communication technology and online security space that Indians can use in the future, and may set precedents for other governments not only to require WhatsApp but also other governments. Secure messaging app Following these rules will Endanger the basic right of personal privacy, Experts say, because breaking one’s encryption means doing it for everyone.Traceability and End-to-end encryption Can’t coexist.
India’s Internet regulations for social media platforms, messaging apps, online media, and streaming video services are through the use of Executive order In February. The platform has three months to comply, and the deadline ends earlier this week. One of the new directives requires a messaging platform (not only WhatsApp but also Signal) with more than 5 million users in the country to be able to identify the first initiator of information when required by a court or government order. For content started abroad, these services need to identify its first instance in India.
Currently, providers of end-to-end encryption platforms such as WhatsApp and Signal cannot see what the message contains, which means they cannot track specific content. Having to maintain the traceability of messages not only means treating everyone as a potential criminal subject, but keeping large amounts of data is also a tedious task for companies.
“Traceability will force end-to-end encryption platforms to change their architecture in a way that negatively affects online privacy and security. They must develop the ability to track who has sent which messages to whom, and store this information indefinitely,” the technology Policy advocate Namrata Maheshwari said. “This is a onerous obligation that will severely disrupt end-to-end encryption and put users’ privacy, security, and freedom of speech at risk.”
Indian government Say Its intent is not to violate anyone’s privacy, and tracking will only be used to “prevent, investigate or punish very serious crimes related to Indian sovereignty and integrity, national security, friendly relations with foreign countries, or public order, or Inciting crimes related to the above or related to rape, pornographic material or child sexual abuse material.”
But these definitions leave enough room for interpretation. The government can track people who post dangerous misinformation, but it can also easily use this power to track how political content flows between different individuals, or to track activists and political opponents.
Matthew Green, a cryptographer at Johns Hopkins University, said: “Once you build a system that can go back and reveal the few people who sent content, you have built a system that can reveal anyone who sends any content. System.” “There is no such thing as just collecting information from bad guys. It is very dangerous to start disclosing this information because you don’t know where it will end.”
This is not the first time that such a demand has been raised on WhatsApp. The platform is facing similar calls from Brazil, which is its second largest market after India.other country, Including the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. Forcing WhatsApp to weaken its encryption. But this is the first formal implementation of traceability requirements, and it is the largest market for the platform.
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