Administrative Director says that use of application opens data security breaches from Congress employees
The administrative director of the House of Representatives of the United States has banned the use of the WhatsApp application on employees and congressmen devices. According to information from the site, the decision was communicated on Monday (23.jun.2025) by email.
An internal evaluation identified vulnerabilities in data security. The ban affects all home -managed devices, including mobile phones, computers and versions of the web browsers.
“Chamber employees cannot download or keep the WhatsApp application on any chamber device, including mobile versions, desktop or browser of your products,” says the statement.
The institution indicated alternatives to WhatsApp, such as Microsoft Teams, Wickr, Signal, Imessage and Facetime. The use of chatgPT has also been limited, with instruction for offices to use only the paid version, Chatgpt Plus.
Meta, a company owner of WhatsApp, contested the decision through its spokesman Andy Stone. “We disagree with the characterization made by the House Administrative Director as strong as possible”Stone told Axios.
“WhatsApp messages are encrypted from end to end by default, which means that only recipients, and not even WhatsApp, can see them. This is a higher level of security than most applications in the CAO approved list that do not offer this protection,” these.
