Elon Musk Says Twitter Should Have This Signal-Like Feature To Ensure Privacy

Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk on Wednesday said Twitter Inc TWTR should have end-to-end encryption for its direct messages to ensure security.

What Happened: The billionaire entrepreneur said Signal, a private messaging app that he backs, provides end-to-end encryption so that no one can spy on or hack the messages.

Unlike Signal and Meta Platforms Inc FB-owned messaging platform Whatsapp, Twitter’s direct messages are not end-to-end encrypted. Whatsapp introduced end-to-end encryption in 2016.

The free and open-source Signal is endorsed by former CIA agent and whistleblower Edward Snowden. The app focuses on privacy and claims it does not collect any data on its users. 

Twitter DMs should have end to end encryption like Signal, so no one can spy on or hack your messages

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 28, 2022

See Also: Does Elon Musk's Twitter Stake Spell Hope For An End To Bitcoin And Dogecoin Giveaway Scams?

Why It Matters: Musk is likely to make some key changes on the social media site he has taken over for $44 billion. The world's richest man has promised to return free speech on Twitter, a platform he said is "the bedrock of a functioning democracy." This is the first time he has talked about Twitter’s safety encryption in direct messages.

The feature prevents third parties from accessing data while it's transferred from one end system. Service providers or any third parties are unable to read the content of messages because they are encrypted on a user’s device and not by the site’s server. 

Price Action: Twitter closed 2% lower at $48.6 a share on Wednesday.