{"id":107098,"date":"2018-08-22T14:16:15","date_gmt":"2018-08-22T14:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sftarticles.wpenginepowered.com\/en\/?p=107098"},"modified":"2025-07-01T23:09:18","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T06:09:18","slug":"your-whatsapp-chats-now-less-secure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/your-whatsapp-chats-now-less-secure\/","title":{"rendered":"Your WhatsApp chats are now a little less secure"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">WhatsApp is moving all of its backup data to the cloud where it will be easier to break into<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">WhatsApp and Google have announced that WhatsApp users will be able to back up all of their WhatsApp data on Google Drive without using up any of their Google Drive allowance. In itself, this is good news, but it also involves a rather unfortunate implication. <strong>All WhatsApp data backed up using Google Drive will no longer be protected by end-to-end encryption.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-card-program\">\r\n  <div class=\"sc-card-program__body\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row clearfix\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-logo\">\r\n        <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__img\" alt=\"Google Drive\" src=\"https:\/\/images.sftcdn.net\/images\/t_optimized,f_auto\/p\/a4ff16fe-96d1-11e6-a92a-00163ec9f5fa\/1950955591\/google-drive-logo.png\" width=\"100px\" height=\"100px\">\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-title\">\r\n        <span class=\"sc-card-program__title\">Google Drive<\/span>\r\n        <a class=\"sc-card-program__button sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/google-drive.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Download Google Drive<\/a>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-rating\">\r\n        <svg class=\"rating-score__content\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.1\" x=\"0\" y=\"0\" viewbox=\"0 0 50 50\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 50 50\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><path class=\"rating-score__background rating-score--good\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><path class=\"rating-score__value rating-score__value--70\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-dashoffset=\"70\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><text class=\"rating-score__number\" content=\"7\" text-anchor=\"middle\" transform=\"matrix(1 0 0 1 25 31.0837)\" data-auto=\"app-user-score\">7<\/text><\/svg>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <span class=\"sc-card-program__description\"><\/span>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__bigpic\" src=\"\" onerror=\"this.style.display='none'\">\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <a class=\"sc-card-program__link track-link sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/google-drive.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Starting November 12, the deal will come into place. You&#8217;ll have to back up your WhatsApp data before then to protect your old WhatsApp messages, photos, videos, and sound files from being deleted. Everything you do save, however, will no longer be protected by WhatsApp\u2019s lauded encryption. In the official blog post from WhatsApp, announcing the change, the following caveat was included:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cImportant: Media and messages you back up aren&#8217;t protected by WhatsApp end-to-end encryption while in Google Drive.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_107099\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-107099\" style=\"width: 1280px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-107099 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-768x433.jpg 768w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-664x374.jpg 664w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-238x134.jpg 238w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-436x246.jpg 436w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-370x208.jpg 370w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-304x170.jpg 304w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/Whatsapp-google-drive-no-encryption-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-107099\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">WhatsApp data saved to Google Drive will not be protected by end-to-end encryption<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">End-to-end encryption scrambles up all communications between devices. It basically means that only the sender and the person or people who they are sending a message to can read it. Once the sent data is backed up to Google Drive, however, this level of protection no longer exists.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Google does claim that all data involved in the transfer from WhatsApp to Google Drive servers is encrypted. There is a catch, however, and in the Google terms and conditions it clearly states Google\u2019s automated systems will scan content in order to provide personally relevant product features and more highly tuned personal search results. Your WhatsApp backups could become the fuel for the ads that Google will be serving you up.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-card-program\">\r\n  <div class=\"sc-card-program__body\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row clearfix\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-logo\">\r\n        <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__img\" alt=\"WhatsApp Messenger\" src=\"https:\/\/images.sftcdn.net\/images\/t_optimized,f_auto\/p\/6b5a0468-96d1-11e6-bfc6-00163ec9f5fa\/1398466786\/whatsapp-messenger-logo.png\" width=\"100px\" height=\"100px\">\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-title\">\r\n        <span class=\"sc-card-program__title\">WhatsApp Messenger<\/span>\r\n        <a class=\"sc-card-program__button sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/whatsapp.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Download WhatsApp<\/a>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-card-program__col-rating\">\r\n        <svg class=\"rating-score__content\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.1\" x=\"0\" y=\"0\" viewbox=\"0 0 50 50\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 50 50\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><path class=\"rating-score__background rating-score--good\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><path class=\"rating-score__value rating-score__value--80\" fill=\"none\" stroke-width=\"6\" stroke-dashoffset=\"80\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" d=\"M40 40c8.3-8.3 8.3-21.7 0-30s-21.7-8.3-30 0 -8.3 21.7 0 30\"><\/path><text class=\"rating-score__number\" content=\"8\" text-anchor=\"middle\" transform=\"matrix(1 0 0 1 25 31.0837)\" data-auto=\"app-user-score\">8<\/text><\/svg>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <span class=\"sc-card-program__description\"><\/span>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"sc-card-program__row\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-card-program__bigpic\" src=\"\" onerror=\"this.style.display='none'\">\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <a class=\"sc-card-program__link track-link sc-card-program-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/whatsapp.en.softonic.com\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">If you\u2019re more worried about hackers getting their hands on your data than ad agencies, then you might have something to worry about. Google uses 256-bit SSL\/TLS encryption for data that is being transferred and 128-AES keys when the data is stored. <strong>Google Drive\u2019s encryption isn\u2019t as secure as WhatsApp\u2019s end-to-end encryption.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The takeaway from all of this\u00a0is that although you can now save all your WhatsApp data without having to pay for storage, you are paying a price. Your data is now in the hands of a corporation that knows how to use it. Also, if you are going to rely on Google Drive to backup all of your WhatsApp data you need to be aware that everything you save there isn\u2019t as secure as it was when it was encrypted by WhatsApp.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey\">\r\n<p class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__title\">More about WhatsApp<\/p>\r\n  <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__row\">\r\n    <a title=\"Don\u2019t touch this button on WhatsApp\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/dont-touch-this-button-on-whatsapp\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__article\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__image\">\r\n        <div style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2018\/05\/whatsapp-roto1-1024x576-1024x576.jpg)\"><\/div>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__text\">\r\n        <p>Don\u2019t touch this button on WhatsApp<\/p>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <\/a>\r\n    <a title=\"What updates can we expect for WhatsApp?\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/what-updates-can-we-expect-for-whatsapp\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__article sc-related-articles-grey__article--last\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__image\">\r\n        <div style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2017\/09\/whatsapp-logo-1024x576-1024x576.jpg)\"><\/div>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__text\">\r\n        <p>What updates can we expect for WhatsApp?<\/p>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__row\">\r\n    <a title=\"WhatsApp tips 2018\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/tips-to-master-whatsapp-in-2018\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__article\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__image\">\r\n        <div style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2017\/06\/whatsapp-1024x576.jpg)\"><\/div>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__text\">\r\n        <p>WhatsApp tips 2018<\/p>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <\/a>\r\n    <a title=\"8 tricks to strengthen your WhatsApp security\" href=\"https:\/\/en.softonic.com\/articles\/8-tricks-to-strengthen-your-whatsapp-security\">\r\n    <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__article sc-related-articles-grey__article--last\">\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__image\">\r\n        <div style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2017\/11\/whatsapp-web-screenshot-1024x576-1024x576.png)\"><\/div>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n      <div class=\"sc-related-articles-grey__text\">\r\n        <p>8 tricks to strengthen your WhatsApp security<\/p>\r\n      <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<!-- Shortcode [playwire] does not match the conditions -->\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>WhatsApp is moving all of its backup data to the cloud where it will be easier to break 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