The US House of Representatives Prohibits WhatsApp on Official Devices, According to Internal Memo

WhatsApp has been blocked on US House of Representatives smartphones, according to an internal document.

The US House of Representatives has banned WhatsApp on all of its devices, a memo addressed to congressional staff on Monday stated.

Citing cybersecurity concerns, the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer’s internal notice claimed that WhatsApp constituted a “high risk to users” because of its opaque data protection policies, lack of stored data encryption, and other possible security flaws.

The message suggested using more secure chat apps like Apple’s iMessage and FaceTime, Microsoft Teams, Amazon’s Wickr, and Signal in favor of WhatsApp.

WhatsApp’s parent company, Meta, vehemently disagreed with the ruling. “We disagree with this decision in the strongest possible terms,” a business spokeswoman stated, claiming that WhatsApp provides more robust security measures than the authorized alternatives.

The prohibition comes after Congress began to examine digital security more closely. A WhatsApp staffer earlier this year said that Israeli spyware business Paragon Solutions had targeted WhatsApp users, including journalists and civil society leaders.

In the past, the House has taken similar measures. Similar national security concerns led to the suspension of the short video app TikTok from staff smartphones in 2022.