WhatsApp global head stresses on keeping messages private

Messaging platform WhatsApp is committed to keeping conversations private,  global head Will Cathcart said while addressing entrepreneurs and startups in Mumbai today.

“WhatsApp was built to help people stay in touch with friends and family as well as connect with businesses,” Cathcart said. “Because people share some of their most personal needs and moments on WhatsApp, we’re committed to helping people in India have private conversations with others that matter to them.” 

Cathcart's latest comment reiterates WhatsApp's stand on maintaining end-to-end encryption of messages sent on the platform.

The central government has been pushing the Facebook-owned company for traceability of messages to curb misinformation and fake news. 

WhatsApp has already tweaked features on its platform, marking forwarded messages and controlling the number of people who can receive forwarded message to five at a time. The company had also partnered with fact-checking agencies ahead of the general elections earlier this year.

It was unclear if Cathcart met representatives from the Reserve Bank of India and the National Payments Corporation of India to discuss the full-scale launch of WhatsApp Pay. The company did not comment on being aware of the meetings. He is scheduled to meet NITI Aayog chief Amitabh Kant in Delhi at an event tomorrow.

Cathcart also announced a partnership with The Indian School of Public Policy for a series of workshops on privacy-centric design in technology. The workshops will be co-hosted by Trust, Transparency and Control (TTC) Labs founded by Facebook in 2018. 

TTC Labs is a group of over 250 startups and was created by Facebook last year as part of CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s response to the US Senate commerce committee hearing in April 2018. TTC Labs aims to develop people-centric design on conveying what personal data is being collected from users.