Facebooks WhatsApp refuses to hand over London attacker's messages
WhatsApp accused of giving terrorists 'a secret place to
hide' as it refuses to hand over London attacker's messages
By Gordon Rayner, political editor 26 MARCH 2017 •
10:04PM
Amber Rudd has vowed to “call time” on internet firms who
give terrorists “a place to hide” as it emerged security services are powerless
to access Westminster attacker
Adrian Ajao’s final WhatsApp message.
The Home Secretary said it was “completely unacceptable”
that Whats App – which is owned by Facebook – was enabling terrorists to
communicate “in secret”, knowing the police and security services will not be
able to read their encrypted communications.
She has summoned WhatsApp, Facebook, Google and a host of
other online firms to showdown talks at the Home Office on Thursday, where she
says she will “call time” on extremists “using social media as their platform”.
Ajao, 52, sent a final message via WhatsApp – which
enables users to send text messages and pictures over the internet – just three
minutes before he began Wednesday’s slaughter.
But Scotland Yard and the security services cannot access
what could be a vital clue in their investigation because WhatsApp uses
so-called “end to end encryption” which the firm says prevents even its own
technicians from reading people’s messages. Detectives cannot find out who Ajao
was messaging, or what he said.
In a scathing attack on WhatsApp, as well as Google and
social media platforms which have failed to take down extremist material, she
said: “Where there are ongoing investigations with terrorists – these people
have families, have children as well, they should be on our side.”
Ms Rudd confirmed that the Government was considering
legislation to force online firms to take down extremist material, but said it
was time for the companies to “recognise that they have a responsibility” to
get their own house in order.
Other companies, including Google, have faced repeated
criticism since the London attack for failing to block terrorist handbooks,
including advice on how to use a car as a weapon and a guide on where to stab
someone who is wearing a stab-proof vest.
Ajao’s final victim Pc Keith Palmer was stabbed to death
by him, despite wearing a stab jacket. Speaking to the BBC’s Andrew Marr, Ms
Rudd said: “What these companies have to realise is that they are now
publishing companies, they are not technology companies, they are platforms and
we need to make sure that that stops. We will not resile from taking action if
we need to.”
WhatsApp, which has a billion users worldwide, has said
that protecting its users’ private communication is one of its “core beliefs”.
Company sources said that “with end-to-end encryption,
WhatsApp does not have access to the content of messages. Only the sender and
the recipient can read the messages on their devices”.
But the Home Secretary said: “We have to have a situation
where we can have our security services get into the terrorists’
communications. There should be no place for terrorists to hide. We would do it
all through the carefully thought-through legally covered arrangements but they
cannot get away with saying ‘we are a different situation’. They are not.
“We need to make sure that organisations like WhatsApp –
and there are plenty of others like that – don’t provide a secret place for
terrorists to communicate with each other.”
Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader, said the security
services had “huge, huge powers of investigation already – there is a question
of always balancing the right to know, the need to know, with the right to
privacy.”
Asked if the balance was right at the moment, he said: “I
think it probably is.”
WhatsApp was blocked three times last year in Brazil for
failing to hand over information relating to criminal investigations.
Judges ordered telecoms providers to block the service.
Rival messaging services such as Telegram are also encrypted, but their
software has been written to enable law enforcement agencies to access messages
where they can prove it is a necessary part of a criminal investigation.
Police in Germany knew Anis Amri was planning a suicide
attack nine months before he drove a lorry into a packed Christmas market in
Berlin last December, killing 12, because they had been able to access
encrypted Telegram messages.
Ms Rudd said: “You can have a system whereby they can
build it so we can have access to it when it is absolutely necessary. We can’t
have a situation where terrorists can talk to each other.”
Asked if Google, Apple and other firms were now too big
for the Government to take on, Ms Rudd said: “I would say think again.”
“We want to do this, but we also want other countries to
do this. “I know it sounds like we’re stepping away from legislation, but we’re
not. ”
“What I’m saying is the best people who understand the
technology to stop it going up in the first place are them. They could have an
industry-wide board set up to take care of this. I want to make sure that they
do.”
Meanwhile, Boris Johnson, the Foreign Secretary, said he
was “furious” about the failure of internet companies to block extremist
material.
He told The Sunday Times: “I think it’s disgusting. They
need to stop just making money out of prurient violent material.”
A spokesman for WhatsApp said: “We are horrified by the
attack carried out in London earlier this week and are cooperating with law
enforcement as they continue their investigations.”
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