Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has confirmed that private messages on X, formerly Twitter, are not encrypted by default, after taking a jab at Meta Platforms Inc.'s (NASDAQ:META) WhatsApp, branding it as "spyware."
What Happened: A user on X questioned the end-to-end encryption of WhatsApp after noticing targeted ads on Instagram following a private conversation about bags. Musk responded to the query, labeling WhatsApp as "spyware."
Because it's spyware
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 7, 2024
In a separate interaction, Musk was questioned about the encryption of direct messages (DMs) on X. The tech billionaire conceded that the encryption feature for one-to-one messages on the social media platform is not activated by default and called its implementation "clunky."
He also noted that the company is working on enhancing the feature and extending it to group messages while assuring users that audio and video calls on X are automatically encrypted.
It currently works in a clunky way for one to one messages (if you turn it on). We're working on making it easy to use and apply to group messages too.
X audio and video calls are automatically encrypted.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 8, 2024
Why It Matters: Musk's latest comments add to his previous criticisms of Meta's privacy practices. In April earlier this year, the tech mogul mocked Meta following an outage of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, attributing it to the platforms being "distracted selling their user's data."
Last year in May, Musk once again targeted Meta's messaging service WhatsApp saying it "cannot be trusted," following allegations by a Twitter engineer that the platform was spying on him through his phone's microphone. Meta eventually responded to the original complaint citing a "bug on Android" as a cause.
Musk has also been a vocal advocate for end-to-end encryption. In April 2022, before acquiring Twitter for $44 billion, he stated that Twitter should have end-to-end encryption for its direct messages to ensure security, similar to Signal.
特斯拉和SpaceX首席执行官埃隆·马斯克在抨击Meta Platforms Inc.后证实,X(前身为Twitter)上的私人消息默认未加密。”s(纳斯达克股票代码:META)WhatsApp,将其命名为 “间谍软件”。
发生了什么:X上的一位用户在私下谈论行李后注意到Instagram上有针对性的广告,因此质疑WhatsApp的端到端加密。马斯克回应了这个问题,将WhatsApp标记为 “间谍软件”。
因为它是间谍软件
— 埃隆·马斯克 (@elonmusk) 2024 年 7 月 7 日
在另一次互动中,马斯克被问及X上的直接消息(DM)加密问题。这位科技亿万富翁承认,社交媒体平台上一对一消息的加密功能默认未激活,并称其实现 “笨拙”。
他还指出,该公司正在努力增强该功能并将其扩展到群组消息,同时向用户保证 X 上的音频和视频通话会自动加密。
目前,它以一种笨拙的方式处理一对一的消息(如果你将其打开)。我们正在努力使其易于使用并应用于群组消息。
X 音频和视频通话会自动加密。
— 埃隆·马斯克 (@elonmusk) 2024 年 7 月 8 日
为何重要:马斯克的最新评论加剧了他先前对Meta隐私做法的批评。今年4月初,在Facebook、Instagram和WhatsApp停机后,这位科技大亨嘲笑了Meta,将其归因于这些平台 “分心出售用户数据”。
去年5月,马斯克再次将Meta的消息服务WhatsApp作为目标,称其 “不可信”,此前一位推特工程师指控该平台正在通过他手机的麦克风监视他。Meta 最终以 “安卓错误” 为由对最初的投诉做出了回应。
马斯克还一直是端到端加密的坚定倡导者。2022年4月,在以440亿美元收购推特之前,他表示,推特应像Signal一样对其直接消息进行端到端加密,以确保安全性。