Telegram founder Pavel Durov suggests that Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos might have avoided hacking if he had used Telegram instead of WhatsApp, which he claims is prone to malicious “backdoor” bugs.
Facebook blames Apple’s operating system for Bezos’s phone hacking, citing WhatsApp’s supposedly unhackable end-to-end encryption.
Investigators suspect Bezos’s iPhone was compromised after he received a 4.4MB video file containing malware via WhatsApp, similar to the method used to infiltrate the phones of 1,400 journalists and human rights activists with NSO Group’s Pegasus software last year.
“WhatsApp’s ‘corrupt video’ vulnerability existed not only on iOS but also on Android and even Windows Phone devices. This means it affected all mobile devices with WhatsApp installed,” Durov stated in a blog post late Thursday.
“This security flaw didn’t occur in other messaging apps on iOS. If Jeff Bezos had used Telegram instead of WhatsApp, he wouldn’t have faced blackmail from those who compromised his communications,” he emphasized.
Durov highlights that WhatsApp often relies solely on the term “end-to-end encryption” as a guarantee of security, yet this technology “doesn’t ensure absolute privacy on its own”.
He further suggests that there are concealed backdoors masquerading as “accidental” security flaws, potentially leading to such breaches.
Enforcement agencies oppose encryption, pressuring app developers to implant vulnerabilities secretly. We’ve been approached but refused to cooperate. Consequently, Telegram is banned in some countries where WhatsApp faces no issues, notably Russia and Iran.
In a recent BBC interview, Facebook’s Vice President of Global Affairs and Communications, Nick Clegg, attributed Bezos’ incident to Apple’s operating system, claiming end-to-end encryption’s invulnerability.
“It sounds like something on the… you know, what they call the operate, operated on the phone itself. It can’t have been anything, when the message was sent, in transit, because that’s end-to-end encrypted on WhatsApp,” Clegg had told the show host.
FTI Consulting’s report, investigating Bezos’ phone, revealed that after the video file was received, his phone began sending unusually large amounts of outbound data, including intimate messages with his girlfriend Lauren Sanchez.
Clegg suggested that “something” affected the phone’s operating system.
“Consequently, the issue was not iOS-specific, but WhatsApp specific,” replied Durov.
“Telegram pioneered end-to-end encryption for mass communication long before WhatsApp, being mindful not just of its strengths but also its limitations. Other facets of messaging apps can nullify this encryption. Below, three examples illustrate potential pitfalls,” he explained.
The FBI’s coercion of Apple to abandon iCloud encryption plans speaks volumes. “This is why Telegram never relies on third-party cloud backups, and Secret Chats remain unbacked,” the Telegram founder emphasized.
WhatsApp boasts 1.5 billion users worldwide, contrasting with Telegram’s 200-300 million users. “Critics may accuse me, as a rival app’s founder, of bias against WhatsApp. Indeed, I am biased. I firmly believe in Telegram Secret Chats’ superior security compared to any alternative – why else would I create and use Telegram?”
Pritam Chopra is a seasoned IT professional and a passionate blogger hailing from the dynamic realm of technology. With an insatiable curiosity for all things tech-related, Pritam has dedicated himself to exploring and unraveling the intricacies of the digital world.
