Iran urges citizens to delete WhatsApp, accuses app of spying for Israel as conflict escalates
Reports suggest the directive was issued by Tehran via the state broadcaster, which had itself been targeted in Israeli airstrikes on Monday.
Iran has called on its citizens to delete WhatsApp, claiming the messaging platform is sharing sensitive information with Israel, as tensions between the two countries intensified on the sixth day of conflict.
Reports suggest the directive was issued by Tehran via the state broadcaster, which had itself been targeted in Israeli airstrikes on Monday.
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The state broadcaster reportedly did not provide evidence to support the claims but cautioned Iranians against using "location-based applications" like WhatsApp.
WhatsApp, owned by Meta, has dismissed the allegations, stating that all messages on the platform are protected by end-to-end encryption. The company also suggested that the advisory may be a move to justify banning the app in Iran.
"We're concerned these false reports will be an excuse for our services to be blocked at a time when people need them the most," WhatsApp said in a statement to CBS News.
End-to-end encrypted
"All of the messages you send to family and friends on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted, meaning no one except the sender and recipient has access to those messages, not even WhatsApp."
Further, WhatsApp clarified that it does not monitor user activity or share data with governments.
"We do not track your precise location, we don't keep logs of who everyone is messaging, and we do not track the personal messages people are sending one another. We do not provide bulk information to any government," the platform said.
"For over a decade, Meta has provided consistent transparency reports that include the limited circumstances when WhatsApp information has been requested."
Onslaught against Iran
The development comes as Israel continued its onslaught against Iran on Wednesday. Israeli warplanes pounded Iran's capital overnight and into Wednesday, hours after Tehran launched a limited missile barrage targeting Israel.
No casualties were reported, but the exchange marked a sharp escalation in hostilities between the two regional rivals.
The strikes come amid rising fears of wider conflict, with Iran warning of severe consequences should the United States get involved.
"Any American intervention would be a recipe for an all-out war in the region," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told Al Jazeera.
The warning followed remarks by former US President Donald Trump, who publicly demanded Iran's unconditional surrender, a call firmly rejected by Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
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