Meta-owned messaging platform Whatsapp has revealed plans to add more security features on the platform in the coming months, to enhance user protection.
The social media platform revealed that it would be rolling out features such as Device verification, Automatic security codes, and Account protection.
For the device verification feature, the company said, “Mobile device malware is one of the threats to people’s privacy and security today because it can take advantage of your phone without your permission and use your WhatsApp to send unwanted messages. To help prevent this, we have added checks to help authenticate your account with no action needed from you and better protect you if your device is compromised. This lets you continue using WhatsApp uninterrupted.”
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On Automatic security codes, the company said, “Our most security-conscious users have always been able to take advantage of our security code verification feature which helps ensure you are chatting with the intended recipient. You can check this manually by going to the Encryption tab under a contact’s info. To make this process easier and more accessible to everyone, we are rolling out a security feature based on a process called “Key Transparency” that allows you to automatically verify that you have a secure connection. What it means for you is that when you click on the encryption tab, you will be able to verify right away that your conversation is secured”.
For account protection, WhatsApp stated, “If you need to switch your WhatsApp to a new device, we want to double-check that it is really you. From now on, we may ask you on your old device to verify that you want to take this step as an extra security check. This feature can help alert you to an unauthorized attempt to move your account to another device.”
Generally, WhatsApp is secure comprehensively when it comes to messages and chats. However, the WhatsApp chats backup is not end-to-end encrypted by default, unlike the messages. Therefore, the backup of users’ WhatsApp messages on iCloud or Google Drive is vulnerable to attacks from hackers.
Meanwhile, it is interesting to note that no messaging system is without vulnerabilities, but reports suggest that WhatsApp is relatively more secure than other messaging apps like Instagram and Snapchat, especially when users enable security features. The working mechanism of the end-to-end encryption feature makes WhatsApp safe from hackers.
However, the safety concerns of WhatsApp have increased ever since the latest updates of its linkage with the Facebook platform. Many users are concerned if the WhatsApp new policy is safe or not. Ever since the release of this policy, there have been many speculations of data breaches and privacy concerns. However, the reality is that this new policy will not impact the end-to-end encryption method.
As the world is experiencing a rapid rate of digitization, safety, and data privacy have become major concerns for platforms in this digital world. Cyber attacks are on the rise on different social media platforms, which can make the data of millions of users vulnerable within a short period. Hence, platforms must ensure to update its security features often to protect users data.
