BEIJING, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) — Facebook parent company Meta today reportedly announced that it will test a new secure storage feature for backing up users’ “end-to-end” encrypted chat data on Messenger.
The move comes at a time when Meta is facing protests for providing Messenger data to police. In response, Meta spokesman Andy Stone said the new secure storage feature has been in development for some time and is not being released at this time in connection with the Nebraska case.
With so-called “end-to-end” encryption, only the sender and designated recipient can access the data, and no one else, hackers, or any third-party organization can access the encrypted data on the server. Meta’s new secure storage feature will allow users to back up “end-to-end” encrypted Messenger conversations so that they can restore historical chat history on a new device.
Meta will not be able to access this backup data either. Users can create a PIN, generate a code, or use a third-party cloud service to restore their chat messages.
Later this week, Meta will roll out the feature on Android and iOS devices, but it will not be available on the Messenger website. In addition, Meta said it will also expand its testing of “end-to-end” encrypted messaging on Instagram, Meta’s photo-sharing social platform.
People want their online conversations with friends and family to be private and secure,” Meta said in a statement. By using ‘end-to-end’ encryption by default on Messenger and Instagram, we’re working to protect our users’ personal messages and calls.”
In fact, Meta has been discussing full deployment of “end-to-end” encryption since 2016. But some critics say the security measure will make it more difficult for law enforcement to catch some criminals.
At the 2019 Lawful Access Summit, hosted by the U.S. Department of Justice, FBI Director Christopher Wray said Facebook would be “a place where some criminals’ dreams come true.
Meta also said in a statement today that it is making progress on its plan to roll out default “end-to-end” encryption for personal messages and calls globally by 2023.
