Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is claiming that the company’s WhatsApp messaging platform is “far more private and secure” than Apple’s iMessage platform. Zuckerberg’s claim came in a new Instagram post. Considering Meta’s entire business model is based on tracking and advertising, Zuckerberg’s claims can be considered somewhat iffy.
WhatsApp is far more private and secure than iMessage, with end-to-end encryption that works across both iPhones and Android, including group chats. With WhatsApp you can also set all new chats to disappear with the tap of a button. And last year we introduced end-to-end encrypted backups too. All of which iMessage still doesn’t have.
The post shares a Meta billboard in New York City that promotes WhatsApp over SMS or iMessage. Apple’s Tim Cook and Zuckerberg have long been in an ongoing battle of words.
During 2021, Facebook continued its public battle with Apple over changes in iOS and iPadOS that made it harder for companies to track users across other websites and apps. Facebook claimed Apple’s “App Tracking Transparency” hurts small businesses that rely on advertising to attract new customers. Zuckerberg went so far as to claim that Facebook’s lackluster growth in the last quarter of the year was partly to blame on Apple’s App Tracking Transparency.
In case you’ve forgotten, Meta, otherwise known as Facebook, was named the worst company of the year for 2021, according to a survey conducted by Yahoo Finance. The “honor” followed a bad year for the company, as it faced 12 months of public backlash, criticism from all quarters, and even a rebranding of the social media company.