Overview
- Instagram, which removed its optional end‑to‑end encryption on Friday, now routes DMs through standard encryption that Meta can access in certain situations.
- Users with encrypted threads are seeing in‑app prompts to download chats and media, and experts advise saving those backups only to local storage to avoid exposing unencrypted copies.
- Meta says it ended the feature due to low opt‑in and directs people who want private messaging to WhatsApp, where end‑to‑end encryption remains on by default.
- The fate of existing encrypted chats is unclear as reporting notes Meta has not said whether those messages will be converted, moved into regular history, or deleted.
- The shift arrives days before the May 19 Take It Down Act deadline, with experts linking the timing to new duties to remove non‑consensual intimate deepfakes, as child‑safety groups welcome better detection and privacy advocates warn of a rollback.