(New York, NY) -- The investigation into the recent London terror attack has focused in part on the attacker’s possible use of encrypted application WhatsApp.
Terror organizations often use encrypted messaging applications to communicate and plan attacks. The U.K. government wants WhatsApp to give security authorities access to encrypted messages that Khalid Masood may have sent over WhatsApp just minutes before carrying out the March 22 Westminster attack that left three pedestrians and one police officer dead and dozens more wounded.
The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) has found that WhatsApp has played a role in a number of U.S. terrorism cases, including:
- Arafat Nagi, who used WhatsApp to talk about his plans to travel to ISIS held territory;
- Mufid Elfgeeh, who attempted to recruit people using WhatsApp; and
- Heather Elizabeth Coffman, who used WhatsApp to send messages to an ISIS facilitator.
CEP CEO Ambassador Mark D. Wallace highlighted the challenges posed by encryption in a Washington Post editorial in December 2015.