Texas Sues Meta Over WhatsApp's Encryption Misrepresentation

On May 21, 2026, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms and WhatsApp, alleging they stored 3.3 billion users' messages in unencrypted form. The lawsuit claims Meta operated an internal system that allowed employees and contractors to access private messages, contradicting their encryption assurances. This complaint follows a similar federal class-action lawsuit filed in March 2026. Meta has denied these allegations, asserting that WhatsApp has maintained end-to-end encryption for over a decade. The lawsuit raises significant privacy concerns for users and operational vulnerabilities for government and critical infrastructure communications. The allegations are supported by a Commerce Department investigation and a whistleblower complaint. The case has drawn attention from industry figures, including Telegram founder Pavel Durov, who criticized WhatsApp's encryption as deceptive.

Key Points: • Texas AG filed a lawsuit against Meta for allegedly storing WhatsApp messages unencrypted. • The lawsuit claims Meta allowed internal access to private messages, violating user privacy. • Meta denies the allegations, asserting that WhatsApp has used end-to-end encryption for years.