Data privacy breach? Elon Musk's bold accusation against WhatsApp

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has publicly criticised Meta-owned WhatsApp, claiming the messaging app exports users' data every night. This allegation arose after a user claimed that WhatsApp's nightly data exports are analysed for targeted advertising, essentially treating users as products rather than customers. Musk responded by saying, “WhatsApp exports your user data every night. Some people still think it is secure.”

John Carmack's Inquiry

In response, John Carmack, a well-known computer programmer and video game developer, questioned Musk's claim. He asked if there was any evidence that the content of messages is being scanned or transmitted. “I assume usage patterns and routing metadata are collected, and if you invoke a bot in a conversation, you are obviously opening it up, but I am still under the impression that the message contents are secure by default,” Carmack posted on X.

Meta's Silence

As of now, Meta and WhatsApp have not commented on Musk's allegations. The ongoing rivalry between Musk and Meta's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is well-documented, with Musk previously accusing Meta of taking undue credit for advertisers running campaigns on its platform. This tension even led to talks of a "cage fight" between the two tech giants, although the event never materialised.