“FBI document says police will receive your WhatsApp data live”, Title Rolling stone It is presented as a shattering revelation. In fact, the title is a huge shortcut and the information is already known. However, popular FBI document WhatsApp and iMessage are not beyond the scope of the authorities, although they are presented as privacy protection services when it comes to legal requests.

That way, With a search warrant, The FBI will receive the address book of the targeted person from WhatsApp, the address book of other people with the target in their contacts, and metadata about the messages being transmitted. The contents of the messages could not be read by the FBI because they are end-to-end encrypted. A survey Prop Pointed out messages reported by users Visible to moderators Platform, but the FBI does not know if it will be able to access these encrypted messages.

In the case of iMessage, the FBI still receives 25 days’ worth of data from Apple about user requests on messages and information about other people searching for Apple’s targets, subject to a warranty. Messages are end-to-end encrypted, so if the iCloud backup is not enabled, the FBI will not be able to read their contents. Because Apple has an iCloud backup decryption key, authorities can request this key and read messages.

This is not a revelation. By keeping this key, Apple retains the ability to decrypt backups of users who have forgotten their passwords. A few years ago, Apple intended to do end-to-end encryption of iCloud backups, so they included messages, but this project did not materialize.

The FBI’s opposition to the plan would play into its abandonment. Other reasons, such as the desire to continue providing a rescue solution to users who have lost their password, may prompt Apple not to complete it.

Apple responded to this article Rolling stone In the usual way, i.e. lead towards him Transparency Report It considers the requests of the authorities in each country, and the requests that Apple may oppose if they do not comply.