Whatsapp and Telegram suspend user data review requests from Hong Kong authorities
Encrypted messaging services Telegram and Facebook’s Whatsapp said today they had “paused” accepting requests from Hong Kong authorities to review user data.
China’s parliament last week passed the national security law in Hong Kong, pushing the city state towards a more authoritarian approach to monitoring its citizens and internet censorship.
Previously Hong Kong enjoyed relatively liberal internet freedoms, retaining access to platforms such as Google, Twitter and Facebook while those sites are blocked in mainland China.
Whatsapp said it would be pausing review requests from law enforcement “pending further assessment of the impact of the National Security Law, including formal human rights due diligence and consultations with human rights experts”.
A spokesperson for Facebook told the Wall Street Journal it intends to do the same, saying in a statement: “We believe freedom of expression is a fundamental human right and support the right of people to express themselves without fear for their safety or other repercussions.”
Telegram also said in a statement that it doesn’t intend to process “any data requests related to its Hong Kong users until an international consensus is reached in relation to the ongoing political changes in the city,” adding that it has never shared data with law enforcement in Hong Kong.
Earlier today China’s ambassador to the UK accused Britain of gross interference in its affairs since Beijing introduced the new legislation.
Aside from internet restrictions, the legislation also punishes crimes of secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces.
Downing Street described the security law as a “clear and serious” violation of the 1984 Joint Declaration under which it handed back its colony to China 13 years later, and said the UK would offer around 3m residents a path to British citizenship.
A spokesperson for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said today that “the enactment and imposition of the national security law constitutes a clear and serious breach of the… joint declaration.”
“It violates Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy,” he added.