Telegram founder Pavel Durov called WhatsApp encryption "the biggest deception in history": according to him, the messenger reads correspondence and transmits it to third parties.
In support, Durov referred to a class action lawsuit from seven users from five countries — the plaintiffs claim that WhatsApp employees could upload messages from specific users upon request.
WhatsApp rejected the lawsuit, and security experts pointed to a lack of evidence.
WhatsApp responded to Durov on the merits: end-to-end encryption is applied by default to all personal messages and calls, and backups are also protected. Telegram does not have such functions, representatives of the messenger emphasized.
At the same time, WhatsApp itself admits that when a message is reported, the service receives up to five of the latest messages from the chat — this is recorded in the company's help section. In 2021, the Irish regulator fined the messenger €225 million for lack of transparency in data processing.