this post was submitted on 29 Jul 2025
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Signal boss warns app will exit Australia if forced to hand over users’ encrypted messages (www.theaustralian.com.au)
submitted 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) by maniacalmanicmania@aussie.zone to c/australia@aussie.zone
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Signal president Meredith Whittaker is prepared to withdraw the privacy-focused messaging app from Australia — saying she hopes it doesn’t become a “gangrenous foot” by poisoning its entire platform by forcing it to hand over its users’ encrypted data to authorities.

Ms Whittaker says Signal would take the “drastic step” of leaving any market where a government compelled it to create a “backdoor” to access its data, saying it would create a vulnerability that hackers and authoritative regimes could exploit, undermining Signals’ “reason for existing”.

Pressure has been mounting on Signal and other secure messaging platforms. ASIO director general Mike Burgess has urged tech companies to unlock encrypted messages to assist terrorism and national security investigations, saying offshore extremists use such platforms to communicate.

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[–] Insane_Turnip@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

the number of folks who will run bespoke solutions will be so small that it’ll be insignificant

For the vast majority of people, you are right. But for the very few malignant actors, that is the thing they'll do. It will make ASIO's job harder as they're now trying to trace foreign VPN's, custom-made encryption programs and other stuff that I personally don't know about (I'm not overly knowledgeable about such computer things).

The >99% of Signal users forced into the sunlight aren't the threat. It's the <1% of Signal users who 'go underground' that are the threat.

[–] quokka@aussie.zone 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Personally, I'll spin up a Mastodon (or similar) instance for my kid and his mates.

[–] No1@aussie.zone 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

"Sir, we have identified a potential terrorist cell. Or a paedophile ring. Which week is it again?"