Social media king Facebook is going to deliver its purpose to expand encryption measures on its Messenger platform on Wednesday, despite warnings from regulators and government officials that improved security will help protect pedophiles and other criminals.
Executives told The Bulletin Time they will also detail their security measures, including updated warnings for recipients of unwanted e-mails.
Senior security officials in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia have complained that Facebook’s plan to encrypt messages on all its platforms could prevent the detection of sexual predators and child pornography.
The changes, supported by civil rights groups and many technology experts, will be explained in detail by the firm’s executives at a technology conference in Lisbon.
Facebook’s head of private messaging, Jay Sullivan, and other executives said the company will move forward with the changes while analyzing the data they collect in more detail.
Sullivan plans to draw attention to an under-publicized end-to-end encryption option in Messenger. The firm expects an increase in its use to provide more data for additional security measures before making private chats the default option.
“It’s a good test for us,” Sullivan said. “It’s part of a global direction”.
The company is also considering banning new Messenger accounts unrelated to Facebook profiles.