Why Iran wants its people to delete WhatsApp, and how the app has responded

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As tensions soar between Iran and Israel, Iranian authorities are now urging citizens to delete WhatsApp, accusing the app of acting as a tool for Israeli intelligence. The move marks a renewed push by Tehran to tighten control over digital communication, reigniting concerns over surveillance, censorship, and information warfare.

The Iranian authorities claim that WhatsApp may harvest sensitive information – even metadata – and hand it over to foreign intelligence services, a charge vehemently denied by the messaging platform.

Meta-owned WhatsApp says these are “false reports” aimed at justifying a new ban when the service is most needed by Iranians.

It emphasised that its end-to-end encryption means messages are visible only to senders and recipients, and that it does not log precise locations, message content, or bulk user data for any government.

“We do not track your precise location, we don’t keep logs of who everyone is messaging and we do not track the personal messages people are sending one another,” it added. “We do not provide bulk information to any government.”

Still, a Cornell cybersecurity expert noted that while message content is encrypted, WhatsApp could log metadata, such as frequency or timing of messages, and its data likely isn't stored on servers within Iran.

Gregory Falco, an assistant professor of engineering at Cornell University, also mentioned data sovereignty, meaning WhatsApp’s data from one country might not be stored in data centres within that same country. For example, Iran’s WhatsApp data might not be kept in Iran. “Countries need to house their data in-country and process the data in-country with their own algorithms. Because it’s really hard increasingly to trust the global network of data infrastructure,” he said.

This isn’t the first time Iran has cracked down on WhatsApp. During the 2022 protests ignited by the death of Mahsa Amini, authorities blocked WhatsApp and Google Play to stifle communication and coordination. That ban was officially lifted in late 2024 after a government vote to ease internet restrictions. However, with the intensifying conflict with Israel, the current government appears to view WhatsApp once again as a threat to national security and information control.