Texas AG Sues Meta Over WhatsApp Privacy Claims

Attorney General Ken Paxton of Texas, America's second-biggest state by size, has filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms and WhatsApp claiming that the company misled consumers regarding the strength and scope of its privacy protections for its messaging app, WhatsApp. The lawsuit says that WhatsApp is widely marketed as a secure messaging service that uses end-to-end encryption (E2E). This means only the sender and recipient can access the contents of messages, not even the platform itself. These representations have led millions of users to believe their communications are fully private and inaccessible to third parties. However, investigations and insider accounts have shown those claims to be blatantly inaccurate. Reports suggest that employees of WhatsApp have been able to access user communications. Additional reporting and investigations indicate that message content can be pulled and viewed after the message has been sent. This is a complete and total misrepresentation of Meta’s privacy policies. “Texans deserve to know whether their private communications are indeed truly private,” said Attorney General Paxton. “WhatsApp markets its services as secure and encrypted, but it does not deliver on those promises. I am suing to protect Texans’ privacy and ensure that WhatsApp by Meta does not mislead Texans by unlawfully accessing private conversations and data.” Attorney General Paxton brings claims under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (“DTPA”). The lawsuit seeks a court order barring Meta and WhatsApp from accessing Texans’ WhatsApp messages without their consent, as well as monetary penalties. This lawsuit follows a series of legal actions aimed to protect data privacy of Texans—including a recent lawsuit against Netflix and a settlement with LG.

What Meta said on the lawsuit

Meta spokesman Andy Stone said on social media that the lawsuit’s allegations are false and that WhatsApp cannot access people’s encrypted communications.