In a series of posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk criticized Meta-owned WhatsApp for allegedly exporting users’ data every night.
The tech billionaire’s comments have reignited concerns about user privacy and data security on popular social media and messaging platforms.
The controversy began when an X user posted that WhatsApp exports user data nightly. The user claimed this data was analyzed. It is used for targeted advertising, making users the product, not the customer.
Musk responded to this post, affirming the allegation by stating, “WhatsApp exports your user data every night.”
He added, “Some people still think it is secure,” implying that the app’s perceived security might be misleading.
Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, has yet to respond to Musk’s allegations.
This silence has left users and privacy advocates eager for clarification on the matter.
The discussion gained further traction when John Carmack, a well-known computer programmer and video game developer, weighed in.
Responding to Musk’s claims, Carmack questioned whether there was any evidence that the content of messages was being scanned or transmitted.
“I assume usage patterns and routing metadata is collected, and if you invoke a bot in a conversation you are obviously opening it up, but I am still under the impression that the message contents are secure by default,” Carmack posted on X.
Musk’s public critique of WhatsApp is not his first clash with Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta Platforms.
Earlier this month, Musk accused Meta of being “super greedy” in taking credit for advertisers’ successes on its platform. He highlighted the ongoing rivalry between the two.
The tension between Musk and Zuckerberg has been a longstanding topic of interest in the tech community, notably culminating in the much-hyped but ultimately unrealized “cage fight” between the two.
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