One of the goals of WhatsApp has always been to make the messages of its users more secure. Since 2016, the platform has enabled end-to-end encryption. However, if our chats were backed up to iCloud or Google Drive, the messages were no longer protected. WhatsApp has announced that it will release an update in the coming weeks to also add end-to-end encryption to iCloud and Google Drive backups.
This is great news for users and for many companies that thus will not need to resort to companies that keep data in the cloud that are in charge of security.
WhatsApp, thinking again about the safety of its users
This has been going on for years and a whole new framework had to be developed for key storage and cloud storage that can be used on the world’s largest operating systems.
WhatsApp encrypts messages between senders and recipients and it is impossible to see them in that “journey” of the message. The problem is when we make a backup in Google Drive or iCloud, since in this case they are not encrypted from one end to the other and are within reach of Google or Apple.
Therefore, this was a big problem both for a simple person who sends photos through a chat and for a company that has millions of users concerned about their privacy.
This does not mean that WhatsApp is going to leave out Google Drive or iCloud, but that they will reinforce security by making backups on these platforms.
In fact, there have been times when the FBI has been able to access WhatsApp chats through unencrypted backups on Google. A complaint is made before a judge and it is he who forces Google to give the FBI access to the information.
Of course, this new option can be used if you wish, since it is not mandatory. In case we want to increase our security, all our messages, photos and videos will be encrypted with a random key that our device will create. To protect this key, you can use a password or enter a 64-digit encryption key ourselves.
Greater security and protection of our messages
Some protection systems have also been added such as making the key permanently inaccessible in case there have been too many incorrect attempts to enter the password.
Backups are a concern for many people, especially if we are going to change devices. Nobody wants to risk losing all their conversations.
With this new WhatsApp backup mechanism, its users are expected to be satisfied with this new security system. In fact, it is likely that other instant messaging applications will soon adopt a similar system.
With its new backups, WhatsApp has taken a giant step in terms of data protection .