Facebook Messenger voice and video calls have end-to-end encryption

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• Facebook Messenger voice and video calls have end-to-end encryption

Voice and video calls on Facebook Messenger are getting more and more secure, with the option of end-to-end encryption now in place, so that no one else can access your communications, not even the Facebook team. The update means video and voice calls are now just as private as one-to-one text conversations, which have been end-to-end encrypted since 2016 (although you'll need to use the secret chat feature to make sure you don't). 't have to.' It is activated). "People expect their messaging apps to be secure and private, and with these new features, we're giving them more control over the privacy of their calls and chats," writes Ruth Kricheli, director of product operations at Facebook Messenger.

More features to come

Facebook says it's also starting to test end-to-end encryption for group chats in Messenger and for direct messages on Instagram, though only a select number of users can see these options right now. More and more controls are coming to individual chats that also use disappearing messages, which is an option in secret and encrypted conversations: users will be able to choose a duration, from 5 seconds to 24 hours, for messages to remain afterwards. have been seen. The new end-to-end encryption on voice and video calls will be optional, so if you want the added security and privacy, be sure to enable the feature once it appears on your devices.

Notice: end-to-end encryption should be the default

(Image credit: Alex Ruhl / Shutterstock.com) End-to-end encryption works much like a lock and key fob: only you and the person you're chatting with have the correct key to decrypt communications and see what is said. If someone else intercepts the messages or calls, they will not be able to interpret them. No one else, whether it's a hacker trying to capture your conversations as they're transferred to the web, a malicious Facebook employee wanting to exploit your communications, or a government agency wanting to spy on what you're doing, can't understand what you're doing. said because they don't have the correct keys. It's not perfect, since someone could break into your phone and view your messages as if they were you, but it's a big step in the right direction. It's also now standard in many apps, including WhatsApp, Signal, and Google Messages on Android. While some businesses and governments don't like the idea of ​​end-to-end encryption, suggesting that it makes it harder to identify and stop criminal activity online, it really is an essential security feature, and it's good to see it. deploy. to more applications and more types of communication.