Dubbed Secret Conversations, the feature allows Facebook’s users to opt in to sending messages back and forth that no one, including the company, the government, or intelligence agencies, can read.
The announcement comes at a time when many are questioning the security of their online presence. From Facebook’s controversial history of mining data from its users to constant threats of identity theft and fraud, more citizens are becoming concerned with the ways in which both the government and private individuals or companies can access their data and communications.
Another feature that’s drawn criticism, this time from privacy advocates, is the requirement that users must select the encryption option when they want their messages to be made private, as it’s not automatically enabled in each messaging chain.
While WhatsApp provides users with automatic and total encrypting, Facebook Messenger has rolled out a model that resembles that of Googles messaging service Allo, which also requires users to trigger an encryption option on each message they want to keep private.
The practice of optional encryption may deprive less tech-savvy users who do not understand the benefits that come from enabling certain settings on the app, or raise a red flag on the actions of users who do enable the feature.
Encryption protects the message itself, but not its metadata, which can still be monitored, letting others see who is messaging whom, and how often.
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