WhatsApp’s encryption battle begins, Brazil implements temporary ban

Local Press Co 5-point Snippet

1. On Monday, a Judge from the state of Sergipe in Brazil ordered a nationwide suspension of the WhatsApp messaging service for 72 hours in Brazil. The ban comes in the wake of WhatsApp’s recent implementation of end-to-end encryption for it’s users.

2. The Judge had earlier ordered WhatsApp to hand over chat records related to ongoing drug investigation. But after WhatsApp argued that it is not in a position to comply since it does not have access to unencrypted data, the Judge ordered the suspension.

3. According to a leading Brazilian news portal, the order by Judge Marcel Maia Montalvao is a chapter in the ongoing battle between Facebook owned WhatsApp and Brazil’s law enforcement agency.

4. In March, the Brazil police had detained Facebook’s Latin America Vice President Diego Dzodan for a day in Sao Paulo for failing to provide access to WhatsApp user data that could help in an ongoing investigation.

5. This isn’t the first time Brazil has ordered a temporary ban on the service. WhatsApp’s 100 million+ users were affected when a similar ban was placed in December last year. But, the 48 hour ban was lifted in 12 hours owing to public outrage.