NET303 Should WhatsApp users be concerned about Privacy and Surveillance?

1. Should WhatsApp users
be concerned about
Privacy and Surveillance?
This is a student presentation for NET303 Power, Politics and The Internet at Curtin University.
All images and links used in the work are acknowledged by the author and covered by Student Creative Commons for copyright purposes.
(http://www.smartcopying.edu.au/information-sheets/schools/students-and-copyright/students-and-copyright/students-and-copyright#creative).
Image retrieved from: https://appadvice.com/appnn
Audio file: Every Breath You Take, The Police. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFBtRfENtm0

2. Who is monitoring our access and why?
• Internet Service Providers
Images retrieved from: https://www.techworm.net/
• Searches
• Usage Patterns
Who? What? Why?
• Improved
Customer
Service
• Targeted push
notifications
• Third party
advertising
• Sites visited
• Words used
• TPG
• iiNet
• Web Platform providers
• Facebook
• LinkedIn
A

3. What about the Government?
Who?
• Access meta data and
• Encrypted messages
To combat increased
cyber terrorism and
crime.
What? Why?
• The
Australian
Government
Images retrieved from: https://www.techworm.net/

4. Privacy and User Awareness
• The Privacy Terms and Conditions on many platforms are often:
• Lengthy
• Vague
• Subject to frequent change
• Likely to stop access to the platform if you don’t agree to them.
Check out:
https://tosdr.org/

5. What’s up with WhatsApp
privacy T&C’s?
• Did not store data
• Did not track words searches
• Did not make product suggestions
• Did not allow third party advertisements
• Did not forward any data to other providers.
Image retrieved from:
https://appadvice.co
m/appnn
Image retrieved from: https://www.rebble.com/
When WhatsApp launched in 2009 it promised they:

6. Did this change?
• Existing users were given 30 days to agree or decline to share their
WhatsApp data with Facebook
• WhatsApp Privacy Policy explains how they now work with
Facebook to improve services like:
• Reducing spam across apps
• Showing relevant offers and ads on Facebook.
• Making product suggestions For more information head to:
https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/#key-updates
In 2014 Facebook bought WhatsApp … Did things change?
Image retrieved from: https://www.shutterstock.com/

7. To Share or not to Share?
If you don’t opt out Facebook
can use your WhatsApp
personal details to:
• Target advertising
• Send third party banners to
your Facebook account.
Image retrieved from: http://www.geekhumr.com/
If you selected the Don’t Share
option on WhatsApp, or aren’t a
Facebook user:
• No change
Share Don’t Share

8. How was the change received?
• There was widespread condemnation
from WhatsApp users globally.
Image retrieved from: https://condenaststore.com/
• The Indian Supreme Court ordered
Facebook and WhatsApp cannot share
third party data with other companies.
• Facebook agreed to pause data sharing
in the U.K and some European
countries.

9. Users have a choice,
Why stay with WhatsApp?
• Cost: In January 2016, WhatsApp announced they would
provide a free service to all users.
• Function: WhatsApp allows:
• Group real time chats
• Large data file transfer (e.g photos and videos)
• A library of instant messaging icons and location check-ins.
• Multiple platforms: WhatsApp can be run through a browser;
• Users can send and receive messages on a computer.
Image retrieved from: https://www.shutterstock.com/

10. Is WhatsApp Privacy better
than SMS privacy?
• SMS is not encrypted.
• WhatsApp encrypts all information sent and received
Even the CIA can’t crack it…yet…. Image retrieved from:
https://www.shutterstock.com/

11. What are the privacy and surveillance
rules for SMS?
SMS privacy and surveillance legislation is covered by the
Telecommunications Act of 1997 (updated 2012). Key areas;
• Compel SMS providers to apply legal data retention for up to 2 years.
• Data retention includes but is not limited to:
• Subscriber data; Account holders information
• Use data; numbers connected to and volume
• Traffic data; information origin, tracing and routing
https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamenta02ry_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BN/2012-2013/DataRetention

12. Is there legislation that compels
WhatsApp to provide encrypted data?
• Internet communications are not currently covered by the
Telecommunications Act in Australia.
• However in June 2017, the Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnball
announced the intended;
Telecommunications Sector Security Reforms.
Image retrieved from: http://www.smh.com.au/

13. Will that change user privacy?
Over The Top services (that is platforms that allow users to
download and view content on demand) such as;
Image retrieved from: https://www.shutterstock.com/https://theconversation.com/when-is-not-a-backdoor-just-a-backdoor-australias-struggle-with-encryption-79421
and
Image retrieved from: https://https://www.shutterstock.com/
Will have to provide the data encryption key
used on their platforms.

14. Can they actually break or use
the encryption?
• Keys generate in pairs;
• A public key and
• A private key.
• The public key cannot be used
to unscramble cyphertext.
• The service provider does not have access to the private key that is
stored on the phone. Image retrieved from: https://www.shutterstock.com/

15. How will reforms affect
WhatsApp users’ privacy?
• The 2017 Independent Intelligence Review recommended;
The Australian Securities Division (ASD) be given legislated mandated
powers to manage or combat cyber security issues.
• This does not specifically state mandated access to encrypted
messages from OTT providers.
For more Information head to:
https://www.pmc.gov.au/sites/default/files/publications/2017-Independent-Intelligence-Review.pdf

16. What does this really mean?
• Facebook do provide access to some encrypted data
• From July to December 2016, 63% of legal requests to Facebook
were provided to Australian law enforcement agencies.
• WhatsApp or Facebook have not released an official statement
regarding Australia’s proposed legislative changes.
• WhatsApp continue to fight governments in both the UK and
America to deny the right for access to encrypted data.
https://govtrequests.facebook.com/country/Australia/2016-H2/
Image retrieved from:
https://www.pinterest.com.au/
jdalyds/emoticons/

17. Last words…
“…..if you look at human history in total, people evolved and
civilizations evolved with private conversations and private speech.
If anything, we’re bringing that back to individuals.”
WhatsApp founder Brian Acton, 2017.
• On the 12th September 2017, Brian Acton announced his decision
to leave WhatsApp.
Image retrieved from: https://condenaststore.com/
https://www.wired.com/2016/04/forget-apple-vs-fbi-whatsapp-just-switched-encryption-billion-people/