US House Bans WhatsApp on Government Devices Amid Security Concerns

US House bans WhatsApp on staff devices over security concerns

The U.S. House of Representatives has banned the installation and use of WhatsApp on government-issued devices belonging to congressional staff, citing concerns over how the app encrypts and secures data. The ban covers mobile phones, laptops, desktop computers, and any web browsers used on those devices. Congressional staff are still free to use WhatsApp on their personal devices, which existing policies dictate are not allowed in sensitive areas such as classified briefings or secure facilities. The U.S. House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress, responsible for creating laws, approving budgets, and representing the American public through 435 elected representatives. Axios first reported on the news of the ban after it got access to a leaked internal email the House's Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) sent to congressional staff, where WhatsApp is essentially classified as a "high-risk" communication platform. The U.S. government has not issued an official statement, but CAO Catherine Szpindor later confirmed the initial reporting via a statement to The Verge. "Protecting the People's House is our topmost priority, and we are always monitoring and analyzing for potential cybersecurity risks that could endanger the data of House Members and staff," Szpindor told The Verge. The CAO told the media outlet that their top priority is protecting the U.S. House and its data, and they regularly review and update the list of approved apps based on cybersecurity risks. This is part of a broader push by the House to restrict potentially risky technology platforms and applications, including ByteDance apps like TikTok and AI tools like ChatGPT, which is only allowed in a special version. The CAO listed Microsoft Teams, Wickr, Signal, iMessage, and FaceTime as acceptable substitutes for WhatsApp, recommending that staff pick one of these instead. In response to our request for a comment on this development, a WhatsApp spokesperson sent us the below statement. "We disagree with the House Chief Administrative Officer's characterization in the strongest possible terms," WhatsApp told BleepingComputer. "We know members and their staff regularly use WhatsApp, and we look forward to ensuring members of the House can join their Senate counterparts officially." "Messages on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted by default, meaning only the recipients and not even WhatsApp can see them. This is a higher level of security than most of the apps on the CAO's approved list that do not offer that protection." WhatsApp recently announced the introduction of ads and promoted content in the Updates tab, raising concerns about data privacy, as the platform will now use location, language, and interaction behavior to serve users with targeted ads.

WhatsApp Banned from US Government Devices Amid Security Concerns

This U.S. House has previously banned other AI centric apps like DeepSeek and Microsoft Copilot as well. It's been almost a week since WhatsApp introduced ads on the platform for the very first time, and today, we hear that the US House has ordered a ban on WhatsApp from all government devices. It's a result of growing concerns about WhatsApp's privacy and data security. This news comes from Axios, which reported that the U.S. House's chief administrative officer has informed congressional staffers about the ban on WhatsApp. As a result, the House staffers cannot install or keep the messaging app on any of the House devices including phones, desktops, or web browsers. The reason for the ban was revealed in an email sent by the chief administrative officer obtained by Axios. The email mentions, "The Office of Cybersecurity has deemed WhatsApp a high-risk to users due to the lack of transparency in how it protects user data, absence of stored data encryption, and potential security risks involved with its use." In response, Meta (WhatsApp's parent company) spokesperson, Andy Stone, told Axios, "We disagree with the House Chief Administrative Officer's characterization in the strongest possible terms." He further added that WhatsApp uses end-to-end encryption, which allows only the recipient to see the messages. Not even WhatsApp can see it, and it has better security than other apps on CAO's approved list. In the meantime, the U.S. House CAO has allowed Microsoft Teams, Wickr, Signal, iMessage, and FaceTime as viable alternatives to WhatsApp. The US House has also banned the use of other AI apps previously, like DeepSeek and Microsoft's Copilot. The sudden ban on WhatsApp is surprising, but the recent AI-fication of the app does lead to some serious questions regarding privacy. The introduction of ads and the fact that the app is working on using Meta AI to summarize messages puts the security of WhatsApp in question.

US House Bans WhatsApp Over Privacy and Security Risks

The United States House of Representatives has banned Meta-owned WhatsApp on all devices used by representatives and their staff. "The Office of Cybersecurity has deemed WhatsApp a high risk to users due to the lack of transparency in how it protects user data, the absence of stored data encryption, and the potential security risks involved with its use," according to the notice sent on June 23rd. Andy Stone, the Communications Director at Meta, denied the allegations from the cybersecurity team of the House. He reiterated that messages on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted. "This [WhatsApp] is a higher level of security than most of the apps on the Chief Administrative Officer's (CAO's) approved list that do not offer that protection," he added. He was referring to the list of alternatives recommended by the House, including Microsoft's Teams platform, Amazon's Wickr, Signal, Apple's iMessage, and FaceTime. U.S. officials have issued several notices either banning certain applications or directing staff to use alternatives. For example, the Chief Administrative Officer issued a partial ban on the use of China-based DeepSeek, ByteDance-owned TikTok, and multimedia editing tools like CapCut and Hypic, according to notices obtained by news outlets. In 2023, the House restricted its staff to using a paid version of ChatGPT instead of the free version. The office also directed staff not to use Microsoft's Copilot, which also relies on ChatGPT's AI models. In May, U.S. security officials used Signal, a competitor to WhatsApp, to communicate planned attacks on Yemen. The news gained attention after Mike Waltz, the national security adviser, added The Atlantic journalist Jeffrey Goldberg to the private group. However, in March, the Pentagon warned its employees against using Signal due to a "technical vulnerability." In a long-running case, WhatsApp filed a lawsuit against Israel-based spyware Pegasus for spying on several individuals. In May 2025, the makers of Pegasus were fined $167 million for hacking about 1,400 accounts. The spyware is allegedly used by several governments, including India's. The case remains ongoing in the Supreme Court of India. Recent research uncovered tactics used by Meta-owned Facebook, Instagram, and several Yandex apps, including Maps and Browser, to track users. The researchers identified this loophole on Android devices but found no similar evidence on iOS devices. They did not dismiss the possibility of exploitation on other operating systems, including smart TV platforms. The key finding revealed that Meta's pixel tracker and Yandex's Metrica scripts misused browser metadata, including cookies and commands, by sending data packets to localhost. These trackers are simple JavaScripts that connect native apps like Instagram and WhatsApp to the user's browser through localhost sockets. The data collected from browsers, such as cookies, can later match user profiles either on native apps or with the Android Advertising ID (AAID), a unique, resettable ad ID linked to the user for analytics. This means the data collected is not anonymized; it can be configured to identify the user's digital identity. This practice allows native apps using these tactics to serve personalized ads, violating user privacy. After researchers flagged the violation, both Meta and Yandex reportedly stopped collecting unauthorized data. In addition, WhatsApp announced plans to introduce ads in its Status section. Using a feature called Accounts Center, WhatsApp can serve ads to users based on content they consume on other Meta apps like Instagram and Facebook, if users link their accounts through a single login, such as a phone number. This setup is similar to linking multiple Meta accounts in one Accounts Center. In the context of these events, the House of Representatives' notice banning WhatsApp usage highlights concerns about the app's security, user data privacy, and unconsented data flows between Meta platforms. Note: MediaNama sent questions to WhatsApp regarding user privacy concerns and the ban by the U.S. House of Representatives. We will update the copy if we receive a response.