Business
Opinions
And here's the news: You're not really going to boycott WhatsApp
Users are furious and afraid of transmitting information, but what do you really know about signal and telegram, and why even divorces from WhatsApp will not prevent the invasion of your privacy?
Tags
WhatsApp
Assaf Amir
Wednesday, January 13, 2021, 5:55 p.m.
Share on Facebook
Share on WhatsApp
Share on general
Share on general
Share on Twitter
Share on Email
0 comments
The message that scared users.
What should you really be afraid of?
(Photo: Screenshot, Screenshot)
You have all heard this news and most of you have been discussing it in recent days: WhatsApp, which is known to belong to Facebook, recently announced that it is going to share metadata with the parent company.
This is information about the phone - device type, device number (IMSI), network, communication provider, etc.
It claims that the contents of calls, messages, files, etc. will not be shared.
Why is this information so significant?
Facebook acquired WhatsApp to gain control of the billions of users' information and monetize it.
That is, trade in our data with various entities, mainly advertisers.
More data allows us to improve the service they give to advertisers, so that they can target us (from the language of targeting - marking a marketing goal) later on Facebook and Instagram.
WhatsApp needs users' permission to transfer their information to a third party, so it has notified users that they must confirm the data transfer, otherwise they will no longer be able to use the app.
The announcement has created a public outcry, and there is a resurgence of users declaring that they will switch to competing apps - Telegram and Signal.
It has already been reported that 25 million users have been added to Telegram in the last three days and it has crossed half a billion users.
So what are these apps, what are their pros and cons?
We'll try to make some order out of the mess.
This can be examined according to 3 parameters: who is behind the application, is it secure, and what type of encryption is it?
More on Walla!
NEWS
The vaccines will not suffice: this is what will keep you from the next plague
To the full article
Signal
is a collection of products that have merged into a non-profit institution called Open Whisper Swimming from Donations.
The code of the app is made public, and researchers have examined it and found no significant security vulnerabilities (such as Backdoor).
Encryption is also open source - giving researchers the opportunity to see that there is no algorithm.
The app's encryption strength has long been known - Edward Snowden used it when he revealed secret information about the National Security Agency's surveillance programs he stole, because he saw it as a safe tool - one that the NSA could not break into.
In fact, even WhatsApp has been using Signal's encryption algorithm in recent years.
Telegram
is an application with Russian roots, with an independent encryption mechanism (which is not subject to review by external experts), and the encryption is not from "end to end" - but from the user to Telegram's server, and from there to the other user.
The information is stored on the company's servers in an open and unencrypted manner, and of course, there is always the fear that various parties (the Russian government) may break this encryption and access the information.
In WhatsApp the
encryption is from end to end, and the encryption algorithm is the same as the signal algorithm, but in fact it is canceled in the sixties because the metadata is transmitted as it is to Facebook.
So what's the bottom line?
Assaf Amir
There is currently hype.
"Everyone" is boycotting WhatsApp, "Everyone" is switching to Signal and Telegram and even Elon Musk is navigating the ship there, but the truth is that it is not clear how many people will actually leave WhatsApp and move to other networks.
Go create a "herd vaccine" where all your family, friends and other contacts who are on WhatsApp move to other platforms.
What's more - if a person stops using WhatsApp and continues to use Facebook and Instagram (especially if the browsing is done from an app installed on the mobile device without the option to remove it, as with many Android devices), then he is already transferring information to Facebook today.
Do you really want to avoid transmitting information?
It seems your only way to do this is to get rid of the phone.
Assaf Amir is the head of the research department of the cyber company SentinelOne
Share on Facebook
Share on WhatsApp
Share on general
Share on general
Share on Twitter
Share on Email
0 comments
