US Congress staff has been reportedly told that they are no longer allowed to use WhatsApp on government devices. It is said that the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of the House of Representatives (CAO) on Monday informed the workers that the app, including a mobile, desktop and web -based version, is not allowed on home -administered equipment.
The CAO wrote in an e -mail, “The CyberSicoreti office considers WhatsApp to be a high risk for users due to lack of transparency, how it protects user data, the absence of stored data encryption and the potential risks to its use.” Axios. Microsoft teams, Vicker, Signal (despite how easy it may be to invite a reporter to a sensitive group chat), was allegedly presented as an acceptable alternative to IMCAG and Facebook, and the CAO reminded workers to be vigilant about potential phishing scams.
“We do not agree with the characteristics of the House’s Chief Administrative Officer’s characteristics,” Meta’s spokesman Andy Stone said.
The move has been followed by restrictions on the use of other apps of the Congress staff (of which the Generative AI), which the CAO has considered dangerous. These include Chattagat, Tactic, Deep Sak (which some states and federal departments have also banned government equipment) and Microsoft Colates.
