Is WhatsApp too risky for Congress? The U.S. Government thinks so
The U.S. House is breaking up with WhatsApp, and it’s not a mutual decision.
WhatsApp has just been kicked off Capitol Hill, at least when it comes to government-issued phones.
Surprisingly, the U.S. House of Representatives has officially banned staffers from using Meta’s messaging app on any government devices due to concerns about data privacy and security. According to an internal memo, House staffers are now being told to delete WhatsApp from their work phones and computers, and they won’t be able to use it going forward.
It also doesn’t help that the House’s Office of Cybersecurity labeled WhatsApp as high-risk, particularly referencing the lack of transparency about how it handles user data, its approach to stored data encryption (or lack thereof), and some other potential vulnerabilities. They’re recommending the staffers to use, in their words, “safer options” like Signal, iMessage, Microsoft Teams, and even Amazon’s Wickr instead.
Well, as expected, Meta didn’t take that quietly. Their communications director, Andy Stone, responded almost immediately on X (formerly Twitter), saying the company disagrees with the House’s decision. And to be fair, he makes a point, WhatsApp does offer end-to-end encryption by default, so even Meta can’t see your messages. In a bid to prove his point, he compared WhatsApp's level of protection with the approved apps, which WhatsApp supposedly supersedes.
And this brings the question: Why the ban? The House Office has given its reason, which doesn’t exactly track, looking at the alternative Apps. Amid all this Meta’s relationship with U.S. regulators has been anything but smooth lately.
The company is neck deep in an antitrust battle with the Federal Trade Commission over its acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram. And now, just days after Meta started testing ads on WhatsApp, it’s suddenly being kicked out of one of the most security-conscious workplaces in the country.
Louis Eriakha
Still, this might not be just about politics or optics. The House CAO insists the goal is simply to protect sensitive government data and reduce cybersecurity risks. Fair enough. But for a lot of people in Washington, where WhatsApp has become a go-to for quick, secure chats, the sudden ban feels a bit extreme.
Like TikTok, whether this decision sticks or eventually gets walked back, is a thing we’ll find out soon enough.
