Zuckerberg says Facebook's future is 'privacy-focused'

SAN FRANCISCO- Reuters

Facebook Inc. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg on March 6 said the company would encrypt conversations on more of its messaging services and make them compatible, the latest sign that the world's biggest social network sees its future in intimate online chats.

Zuckerberg said in a post on his Facebook profile that "working towards implementing end-to-end encryption for all private communications is the right thing to do." He cautioned that details of the plan could change, however, as the company consults experts throughout 2019.

The strategy could frustrate law enforcement surveillance efforts as well as lawmakers who have called on Facebook to better moderate user content. It also would limit the company's ability to generate revenue through targeted ads.

But Zuckerberg said he could live with those tradeoffs because users want better control of their data while still having easy access to their contacts.

As part of Zuckerberg's strategy, a Facebook user would be able to communicate with WhatsApp users while only having a Messenger account and vice versa.

"As I think about the future of the internet, I believe a privacy-focused communications platform will become even more important than today's open platforms," Zuckerberg wrote.

Lawmakers, users and investors have expressed concerns over the last two years that Facebook is not doing enough to safeguard user data after a series of breaches and privacy bugs.