WhatsApp users warned of more risk to bank accounts as the app prepares for big changes
WHATSAPP users may be at greater risk of scams and spam once a new law allowing third-party messaging comes into effect.
In early February, Meta’s messenger revealed that it will soon undergo a significant shake-up that will allow other messaging networks within the app.
Thanks to new laws laid out in the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), WhatsApp users should see a new inbox option appear on their app sometime in March.
Within the DMA there is a series of new laws that technology companies will have to comply with in order to continue operating in the bloc.
One of these new laws means that tech apps, such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, owned by Meta, cannot be ‘gatekeeper services’.
Spam and scams may be more common in third-party chats.
So-called ‘gatekeeper services’ are apps that can only be used together with other people using the same app.
Therefore, under the new rules, apps must be interoperable with other messaging apps.
This applies to all messenger apps, including iMessage, Telegram, Google Messages, and Signal.
But according to a new report from WABetaInfo, WhatsApp’s beta version, which enables third-party chats, is warning users that “Spam and scams are more common with third-party chats.”
Dick Brouwer, technical director at WhatsApp, warned about this outcome last month in an interview with Wired.
“There is a real tension between providing an easy way to offer this interoperability to third parties while maintaining WhatsApp’s privacy, security and integrity bar,” he said at the time.
Speaking about the feature being optional, he added: “I can choose whether or not I want to participate in being open to exchanging messages with third parties.
“This is important because it can be a big source of spam and scams.”
In general, third-party chats appear to be less secure than conversations conducted by all parties exclusively within WhatsApp.
When you first try out third-party messaging, a welcome screen will appear warning users that this feature allows you to send a message to “someone outside of WhatsApp” and that “third-party apps may use different end-to-end encryption. ”
The welcome message adds: “Third-party apps have their own policies.
“They may handle your data differently than WhatsApp.”
WhatsApp prides itself on its end-to-end encryption: a security feature that scrambles messages to ensure no one can see the content.
Fortunately, this is an opt-in feature, meaning you don’t have to use it if you don’t want to.
You’ll also need to manually enable the third-party feature in your settings so you don’t get any surprises.
The option simply exists for those who want it, in an effort to comply with new EU regulations.
How will it work?
In practice, a WhatsApp user will be able to send a text message to a Facebook Messenger user – and vice versa – without having to use the other app.
It will only be on an opt-in basis, according to Brouwer, who wants users to be able to choose whether to participate in third-party messaging.
WhatsApp users who enable cross-platform messaging will see a separate inbox at the top of their Chats menu for ‘third party chats’, where messages from other apps will appear.
The reason that third-party messages get their own inbox is because WhatsApp cannot guarantee the same level of security and privacy as native messages, says Brouwer.
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