Why governments keep losing the ‘war on encryption’

Governments around the world continue to wrestle with the proliferation of strong encryption in messaging tools, social media, and virtual private networks.

Reports that prominent American national security officials used a freely available encrypted messaging app, coupled with the rise of authoritarian policies around the world, have led to a surge in interest in encrypted apps like Signal and WhatsApp. These apps prevent anyone, including the government and the app companies themselves, from reading messages they intercept.