Elon Musk Slams WhatsApp As 'Not Secure' After Lawsuit Accuses Meta Of Misleading Billions – Here's How Platform's Head Responded - Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)

Core Viewpoint - Elon Musk has reignited the debate over chat app privacy by labeling WhatsApp as "not secure" and promoting X Chat, following a lawsuit against Meta Platforms, Inc. regarding misleading encryption claims [1][2]. Group 1: Musk's Claims and Promotion - Musk criticized WhatsApp and even questioned the security of Signal, encouraging users to switch to X Chat, which is integrated into his social media platform [2]. - His previous endorsement of Signal in 2021 led to a significant increase in its downloads [2]. Group 2: Lawsuit Against Meta - A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco alleges that Meta misrepresents WhatsApp's end-to-end encryption, claiming that Meta can access users' private communications [4]. - Meta has dismissed the lawsuit as "frivolous" and maintains that it does not have access to users' messages due to encryption keys being stored on users' devices [5]. Group 3: Responses and Market Reaction - WhatsApp's head, Will Cathcart, refuted Musk's claims, asserting that the encryption keys are stored on users' phones, preventing WhatsApp from reading messages [5]. - The privacy debate has also drawn comments from Telegram's founder, who has raised concerns about WhatsApp's security practices [7]. - Meta's stock experienced a slight increase, closing at $672.97 and rising to $674.45 in after-hours trading, with a strong Quality score in Benzinga Edge rankings [7].