As tensions heighten in the ongoing San Bernardino iPhone encryption case, some of Silicon Valley's top technology companies are said to be bolstering their own security measures.
The Guardian has it on good authority that WhatsApp is planning to encrypt in-app voice calls as it does with its secure messaging service in the coming weeks. Facebook, which purchased WhatsApp for around $19 billion in 2014, is also said to be considering tighter security for its self-branded Messenger app.
Rival messaging service Snapchat is working on a secure messaging service as well, the publication said, adding that Google is looking into other uses for the technology behind an encrypted e-mail project.
The report notes that engineers at several major technology players such as Twitter have looked into encrypted messaging products in the past. Unfortunately, many of those products were never fully developed as such products can sometimes be difficult to use or companies focused efforts on other consumer-facing projects instead. Now that encryption is such a hotbed issue, technology executives now view it as a legitimate business advantage rather than mere marketing fluff.
It's worth pointing out that the publication claims the various encryption projects were in motion before Apple went to court with the Department of Justice regarding the aforementioned San Bernardino incident. The results of that case are still pending.
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