The U.S. House of Representatives has formally banned congressional staff members from using WhatsApp on government-issued devices, citing security concerns.
The development was first reported by Axios.
The decision, according to the House Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), was motivated by worries about the app’s security.
“The Office of Cybersecurity has deemed WhatsApp a high-risk to users due to the lack of transparency in how it protects user data, absence of stored data encryption, and potential security risks involved with its use,” the CAO said in a memo, according to Axios.
To that end, House staff are prohibited from downloading the app on any device issued by the government, including its mobile, desktop, or web browser versions.
WhatsApp has pushed back against these concerns, stating messages sent on the platform are end-to-end encrypted by default, and that it offers a “higher level” of security than most of the apps on CAO’s approved list.
“We disagree with the House Chief Administrative Officer’s characterization in the strongest possible terms,” Meta’s Communication Director Andy Stone said in a post on social media site X.
“We know members and their staffs regularly use WhatsApp and we look forward to ensuring members of the House can join their Senate counterparts in doing so officially.”
As “acceptable” alternatives, the CAO’s message has recommended that the staff use apps like Microsoft Teams, Amazon’s Wickr, Signal, and Apple’s iMessage and FaceTime. WhatsApp is the latest app to be banned by the House after TikTok, OpenAI ChatGPT, and DeepSeek.
Last week, the Meta-owned messaging app said it’s bringing ads in an effort to monetize the platform, but emphasized they are done in a manner without sacrificing user privacy.
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