We live in a world that is dictated by targeted ads. Without
targeted ads some of the biggest names in the Valley would cease to exist.
These companies are constantly looking for ways to overcome the hurdles posed
by today’s encryption laws. One such behemoth is Facebook which is reportedly
looking into analyzing the content of encrypted WhatsApp chats without having
to decrypt it. The social media giant is recruiting artificial intelligence
(AI) research to study encrypted WhatsApp chats for ads. This research could
help Facebook sell target ads based on messaged on the platform to its
advertisers. Facebook is also looking into ways to encrypt user data without
affecting its ad targeting approaches.
Companies like Alphabet-owned Google, Amazon and Microsoft
are hard at work to decode this so-called “homomorphic encryption.” The aim of
this study is to allow tech companies to read and analyze data all the while
keeping it encrypted to protect information from cybersecurity risks.
Over past several months, Facebook has been the subject of
scrutiny of regulators and members of the public due to its questionable
privacy practices. With the help of homomorphic encryption, Facebook will
finally be able to overcome these privacy concerns and its relation to the
platform’s business model of running ads.
This latest bit of news come as Facebook goes all out to
stop Apple’s iPhone privacy. Apple’s iOS 14 allows users to opt-out of ad
tracking across all apps on the device. This puts a massive dent on Facebook’s
core business of delivering online ads. WhatsApp is also facing backlash over
its new privacy policy changes. The scrutiny was so intense that it forced
Facebook to delay and alter the rollout a few times this year. Analysts are
confident that Facebook wants to figure out new ways to monetize its data. With
encryption on platforms like WhatsApp, it cannot make money out of the
platform. Homomorphic encryption could help Facebook solve this problem.
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