Facebook Brings End-To-End Encryption To Messenger

According to the world’s most populous social media platform, the new option aims to better support conversations about sensitive topics.

Rolling out now to select users, the new feature comes with several interesting features.

End-to-end encrypted messages can be read only by the person with whom you’re communicating, and on only one device.

As an additional layer of security, a message sent this way can only be read on one of the devices belonging to the message recipient. You can also set a timer that makes the message self-destruct after a certain amount of time. It also doesn’t support rich content including GIFs, videos and making payments.

The chat service already uses “secure communications channels,” but “We’ve heard from you that there are times when you want additional safeguards,” Facebook said in an announcement.

“Perhaps when discussing private information like an illness or a health issue with trusted friends and family, or sending financial information to an accountant.

“That means the messages are intended just for you and the other person—not for anyone else, including us.

“We are putting a lot of thought into the design and implementation of this feature, and we are grateful to the security and privacy experts who have given us their valuable input,” the statement added.

Facebook says it will make the option more widely available this summer and asks for feedback from users that already have it enabled.

The announcement comes three months after Facebook’s WhatsApp texting service said it had strengthened its encryption—also using Open Whisper Systems—so only the sender and receiver are able to read the contents of messages.