Facebook Delays Plans to Use End-to-End Encryption As Default for Messenger and Instagram Messages Until at Least 2023

Facebook, now rebranded to "Meta," is delaying plans to use end-to-end encryption for Messenger and Instagram messages until at least 2023, a year later than the previous deadline promised by the social media behemoth.

General Insta Facebook Messenger Feature Blue
Writing in The Telegraph, Meta's head of global safety, Antigone Davis, said that the company is pushing back its deadline to roll out end-to-end encryption as the default for billions of Messenger and Instagram users until "sometime in 2023." Meta claims this delay is meant to give it extra time to coordinate with experts in the field of combating online abuse while also protecting user privacy.

We're taking our time to get this right and we don't plan to finish the global rollout of end-to-end encryption by default across all our messaging services until sometime in 2023. As a company that connects billions of people around the world and has built industry-leading technology, we're determined to protect people's private communications and keep people safe online.

Facebook had previously set in motion a plan to fully encrypt all messages in Messenger and Instagram in 2022, but following that announcement, government officials, institutions, and others raised concerns. Concerns amount to whether end-to-end encryption will make it harder for law enforcement to protect public and child safety.

Davis said that a balance can be and must be accomplished. "We believe people shouldn't have to choose between privacy and safety," Davis wrote, adding that Meta is "engaging with privacy and safety experts, civil society and governments to make sure we get this right."

Instagram, owned by Meta, has introduced features and changes to improve the platform for younger users, including automatically defaulting the accounts of users under the age of 18 to private. Meta is also relying on people's goodwill to combat possible abuse on its platform.

Third, we're actively encouraging people to report harmful messages to us and will prompt them to do so when we think there could be a problem. Once they do, we can view the reported message, investigate the content, offer support where appropriate, and take action where necessary. Where we find abuse, we make referrals to the authorities and respond swiftly to valid requests for data to support law enforcement investigations – as we always will.

Davis is defended the need for end-to-end encryption, citing recent cases with data requests from law enforcement showing that the majority of user information requested is non-encrypted in the first place. "While no systems are perfect, this shows that we can continue to stop criminals and support law enforcement," Davis wrote.

Meta already utilizes end-to-end encryption on WhatsApp, but that privilege is not extended by default to all Facebook Messenger and Instagram DM users. In August, Instagram said it would be testing "opt-in" end-to-end encryption chats for a limited number of adult users in certain countries. Signal, Telegram, and iMessage are all end-to-end encrypted with no need to "opt-in" to the most secure form of mobile communication.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
macbook pro blue green

When Will Apple Release the M5 MacBook Pro?

Wednesday March 26, 2025 4:53 pm PDT by
Apple regularly refreshes the MacBook Pro models, and a new version that uses M5 series chips is in the works. Apple just finished refreshing most of the Mac lineup with M4 chips, and now it's time for the M5. Rumors suggest that we could see the first M5 MacBook Pro models this fall. Design There have been no rumors of a design update for the M5 MacBook Pro models that are coming this...
Apple Lumon Terminal Pro

Apple's Mac Site Features Fictional 'Lumon Terminal Pro'

Wednesday March 26, 2025 12:19 pm PDT by
Apple is going all out with promotions for the popular Severance Apple TV+ show today, and as of right now, you'll find a new "Lumon Terminal Pro" listed on Apple's Mac site. The Lumon Terminal Pro is designed to look similar to the machines that Severance employees like Mark S. and Helly R. use for macrodata refinement. The Terminal features a blue keyboard, a small display with wide...
Facebook Feature

Facebook's New iPhone App Feature Turns the Clock Back to 2007

Thursday March 27, 2025 1:59 pm PDT by
In the mid-to-late 2000s, Facebook was all about staying connected with friends and family. However, as the social media platform added new features and grew over time, that core experience began to get drowned out. That changes starting now, according to Meta, which today introduced a new feature that will "bring back the joy" of classic Facebook. Specifically, Meta has redesigned the...
Generic iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Coming Soon With These New Features for Your iPhone

Tuesday March 25, 2025 6:45 am PDT by
Apple is expected to release iOS 18.4 to the general public as soon as next week, following more than a month of beta testing. Apple's website says some iOS 18.4 features will be released in "early April," so the update should be out as early as Tuesday, April 1. Apple this week seeded the iOS 18.4 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, barring the discovery of any...
iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Supports 8K Video Recording, Suggests Leaker [Updated]

Wednesday March 26, 2025 4:06 am PDT by
Update 7:25 pm: Based on comments from our forums, it appears the original Weibo post may have been mistranslated and "8K" actually refers to the high price of the device rather than 8K video recording capabilities. The iPhone 16 Pro currently starts at 7,999 yuan in China. Our original article follows below. Apple's forthcoming iPhone 17 Pro models are capable of shooting 8K video, up...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

'iPhone Fold' to Feature Metallic Glass Hinge That Resists Deformation

Thursday March 27, 2025 4:21 am PDT by
Last week, we covered a report claiming that Apple's book-style foldable iPhone (or "iPhone Fold," as we are provisionally calling it here) will use liquid metal hinges to improve durability and help minimize screen creasing. Today, a Chinese leaker provided more details on the properties of this hinge material that help to clarify why Apple chose it for its first foldable device. According...
iOS 18 4 Ambient Music Control Center

How to Use iOS 18.4's New Ambient Music Feature in Control Center

Thursday March 27, 2025 7:45 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone adds an Ambient Music feature to Control Center. Below, we take a closer look at how it works. iOS 18.4 is currently in beta, so the Ambient Music feature is not widely available yet. The update will likely be released to the general public next week. To use the feature on iOS 18.4, open Control Center and tap on the plus sign in the top-left...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

Gurman: Jon Prosser's iOS 19 Mockups 'Aren't Representative' of Redesign

Tuesday March 25, 2025 4:47 pm PDT by
The iOS 19 mockup images that leaker Jon Prosser shared today are not representative of the actual iOS 19 design, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on social media. According to Gurman, the images that are "floating around" are based on "very old builds" or "vague descriptions," and are lacking key features. Gurman says that we can "expect more from Apple in June." Gurman made the same comment ...

Top Rated Comments

aloyouis Avatar
44 months ago
End to end encryption but THEY will still be reading them and lifting everything they want from the messages?

They will keep other from stealing what they steal?

So they are simply protecting their product?

LOL. FB sucks.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mac Fly (film) Avatar
44 months ago
Facebook has a bridge to sell you. I encrypt Facebook by not using Facebook.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
44 months ago
That’s fine. I don’t think anyone cares or anyone is looking forward to this.

Facebook and Privacy don’t go together. Clueless, especially with that Meta, Beta name.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GustavPicora Avatar
44 months ago
"...We're taking our time to get this right..." meaning, to add end-2-end encryption while still being able to sneak around when they want. Thats their definition of "right".
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
4743913 Avatar
44 months ago
encryption and privacy are not even in the vocabulary of people who use these apps.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
roar08 Avatar
44 months ago
Translation: we need to make sure all the backdoors are properly installed.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)