Meta delivers long-awaited privacy features for Facebook and Messenger

Meta Platforms announced on Wednesday the launch of end-to-end encryption for personal messages and calls on Messenger and Facebook.

The new privacy features will be available for use immediately, Meta said, although it may take some time for existing Messenger chats to be updated with default end-to-end encryption. 

"We take our responsibility to protect your messages seriously and we’re thrilled that after years of investment and testing, we’re able to launch a safer, more secure and private service," Loredana Crisan, head of Messenger, wrote in a blog post on Meta's website.

Encryption is a function on certain apps and devices that allows users to send and receive private messages.

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End-to-end encryption allows people to communicate with each other on certain apps or devices without worrying about developers and other third parties like hackers or law enforcement having access to those messages.

Cybersecurity infrastructure company Cloudfare explains encryption as a way of scrambling plain text into a kind of unreadable language.

Encryption "is the process of converting plaintext to ciphertext. In simpler terms, encryption takes readable data and alters it so that it appears random. Encryption requires the use of an encryption key: a set of mathematical values that both the sender and the recipient of an encrypted message know," Cloudfare's website reads.

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Messenger previously offered end-to-end encryption as an optional setting, which prevents anyone but the sender and recipient from reading or listening to what was said. Now, the enhanced privacy feature will be activated by default, Meta said. 

Meta, whose WhatsApp platform already encrypts messages, has said encryption can help keep users safe from hackers, fraudsters and criminals. 

"This has taken years to deliver because we’ve taken our time to get this right," Crisan wrote. "Our engineers, cryptographers, designers, policy experts and product managers have worked tirelessly to rebuild Messenger features from the ground up." 

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However, encrypted messaging apps are controversial, as governments have butted heads with social media companies. Encryption makes it harder for law enforcement to identify human traffickers and other criminals who communicate through those apps.

In 2019, the Trump administration requested that Meta develop a "back door" that would allow law enforcement to read encrypted messages. Meta strongly opposed the request, arguing it would infringe on people's privacy and security. 

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More recently, the British government urged Meta in September not to roll out encryption on Instagram and Facebook Messenger without safety measures to protect children from sexual abuse.

"We worked closely with outside experts, academics, advocates and governments to identify risks and build mitigations to ensure that privacy and safety go hand-in-hand," Crisan said.

Fox Business' Audrey Conklin and Reuters contributed to this report.