Meta kills end-to-end encryption in Instagram DMs

Meta kills end-to-end encryption in Instagram DMs. The feature « will no longer be supported after May 8, 2026, » the company wrote in an update to its support page. Unlike WhatsApp, Meta never made encryption available to all Instagram users and was never a default setting. Instead, users in « some areas » had the option to opt-in for chat-based encryption.

In a statement, a Meta spokesperson said the feature is being retired due to low adoption. « Very few people chose end-to-end encrypted messages in DMs, so we’re removing that option from Instagram in the coming months, » the spokesperson said. « Anyone who wants to continue sending messages with end-to-end encryption can easily do so on WhatsApp. »

Interestingly, Meta’s statement did not mention the encryption status in Messenger. The company began including end-to-end encryption as the default setting in 2023 after years of work on the feature. A Messenger support page currently states that the company is « in the process of securing private messages with end-to-end encryption by default. »

Meta’s approach to encrypted messages has changed several times over the years. It began encrypting WhatsApp chats in 2016. In 2019, Mark Zuckerberg outlined a « privacy-focused » overhaul of the company’s apps, saying at the time that « implementing end-to-end encryption for all personal communications is the right thing to do. » In 2021, the head of the company’s safety department said that Meta was delaying its encryption work until 2023 to create stronger safety features.

Meta’s use of encryption has been repeatedly criticized by law enforcement and some child safety organizations, who say the feature makes it harder to catch predators who target children on social media. Recently, the topic has been brought up repeatedly during a New Mexico child safety trial. Internal documents that surfaced as part of the trial show that Meta executives and researchers are discussing the trade-offs between safety and privacy when it comes to encryption.

In testimony aired during the trial, Zuckerberg said security issues were « a big part of the reason it took so long » to introduce encryption to Messenger. « There has been some debate about this, but I think the majority of people, from the people who use our products to the people who are concerned with security in general, believe that strong encryption is a positive, » he said.