Meredith Whittaker, Signal president: Privacy is a human right

“Private communication is a fundamental human right for a reason, because when those with power over you have access to your intimate thoughts and your communication, they use those to punish you. They can use them to persecute you. They can use them to shut you up.”

Megha Mohan speaks to Meredith Whittaker, president of the Signal Foundation, which runs the encrypted messaging app Signal.

Its end-to-end encyption means only the people in a conversation can read their messages. The protections are so strong that even Signal itself can’t see the contents.

That privacy can be vital for journalists living under authoritarian governments, dissidents and other vulnerable people, but it can also allow scammers, child abusers and criminals to communicate beyond Signal’s view.

Governments are demanding greater access to encrypted communications, but Whittaker says Signal would rather leave a country than weaken its protections.

The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including conversations with former Sudanese leader Aisha Musa, Ukrainian drone commander Robert Brovdi; plus many others

You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.

Presenter: Megha Mohan
Producer: Osman Iqbal
Editor: Farhana Haider

(Image: Meredith Whittaker. Credit: Reuters)