Privacy and security has always been a hot topic, but never more so than in recent months. The Apple/FBI case has really brought things to a head, enlivening the debate between privacy and security advocates, and those who side with the government. As Apple fights to prevent the FBI from accessing the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone, Facebook, Google and others are looking to increase encryption and lockdown user data even further.
The Guardian has learned that a number of Silicon Valley companies are working on ultra-secure encrypted messaging systems. With President Obama having made a sideways reference to supporting the inclusion of backdoors for government, Facebook is planning to not only bring encryption to Whatsapp's voice messages, but also to bolster the security of Facebook Messenger.
Although many of these security projects were under way well before the Apple case hit the headline, the raging battle serves -- as the Guardian suggests -- as a perfect backdrop for advertising these new or improved services. Google, a company for whom privacy and security really needs to be of the utmost importance, is said to be working on an encrypted email project, and Snapchat is also in line for a secure messaging component.
full article here:
