End-to-end encryption, the technology that keeps communication over the Internet secure, is under threat – in the UK, the US, and in India. Meredith Whittaker, the President of the Signal Foundation – which runs the eponymous messaging app – said that privacy is about power asymmetries, with governments and corporations trying to leverage intimate information they have about people. The messaging app is supported by the Signal Foundation, which relies on donations made by users for funds. In an interview with Soumyarendra Barik, she also spoke about how Signal responds to law enforcement agencies including in India, the hype around current AI platforms, attempts by big businesses to launch open source AI models and how Signal could help during Internet shutdowns. Edited excerpts:
We finally had a data protection law some weeks ago, but despite that, you see the notion of privacy having varying explanations in our society. Some say it is perhaps an elitist right, in that only the well to do people care about it. The reality is also that despite being the biggest democracy online, there are households where one digital device is shared by adults of different genders, and kids. How do you view India as a market for an app that’s solely focused on offering private communications?
This story is subscriber only!
Now subscribe at a special Republic Day offer of Rs 75/month.
Subscribe Now
Already a subscriber? Sign in