WhatsApp announces end-to-end encrypted backups on iCloud, Google Drive

Instant messaging platform WhatsApp has announced it will roll out end-to-end encrypted backups for iCloud and Google Drive, a statement from the messaging app said Friday.

The instant messaging platform said users can now make sure that their "bestie’s voice messages and mum’s secret recipe will be safely stored in a place only [they] can access".

"Developing end-to-end encrypted backups was an incredible technical challenge: an entirely new framework for key and cloud storage," the platform said.

People can already back up their WhatsApp message history via cloud-based services like Google Drive and iCloud, a separate statement from WhatsApp's parent company, Facebook, said.

"WhatsApp does not have access to these backups, and they are secured by the individual cloud-based storage services," it said.

But now, if people choose to enable end-to-end encrypted (E2EE) backups once available, neither WhatsApp nor the backup service provider will be able to access their backup or their backup encryption key, it added.