Meta Faces Criticism Over Encrypted Messaging and Child Safety Risks

NEW YORK – Meta executives continued plans to implement end-to-end encryption on Facebook and Instagram messaging services despite internal warnings about increased child exploitation risks. The company’s internal documents, filed in a New Mexico state court, reveal senior staff concerns about the safety of minors on its platforms.

Internal chats from March 2019 show Monika Bickert, Meta’s head of content policy, expressing that the encryption plan was “irresponsible” and could severely limit the company’s ability to report child exploitation cases to law enforcement. The documents, obtained during a lawsuit by New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez, allege that Meta allowed predators access to underage users, sometimes resulting in real-world abuse and human trafficking.

The New Mexico case is the first against Meta to reach a jury, highlighting allegations that the company misrepresented the safety of its plan to implement default end-to-end encryption on Messenger. The encryption was later expanded to Instagram Direct Messages, raising concerns that reports of child sexual abuse content would drop significantly. Meta estimated reporting would have fallen from 18.4 million cases to just 6.4 million if Messenger had been encrypted.

Despite these risks, Meta launched end-to-end encryption for Facebook and Instagram in 2023, implementing additional safety measures. Meta spokesperson Andy Stone stated that the company developed tools to detect abuse in encrypted chats. These include special underage user accounts preventing unknown adults from initiating contact and reporting systems allowing users to flag objectionable messages.

Safety experts within Meta also noted that WhatsApp, its existing encrypted messaging service, carried fewer risks because it does not connect directly to a public social graph. Bickert and other executives warned that connecting encryption to social media platforms could enable predators to exploit children more easily.

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Meta is facing growing litigation and regulatory scrutiny worldwide over youth safety on its platforms. The New Mexico case, along with lawsuits by other state attorneys general and school districts, continues to examine the balance between privacy features and child protection.