"WhatsApp is so important to us — all my work depends on it," Shir Ahmad Burhani, a police spokesman for the Taliban administration in Baghlan Province, told the Times."If there were no WhatsApp, all our administrative and nonadministrative work would be paralyzed."
Representatives for Afghanistan's Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defense, both controlled by the Taliban, did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment. The Times reported a spokesperson for Meta said WhatsApp identifies users associated with the Taliban by scanning group names, descriptions, and group profile photos, then blocking offending accounts.
Representatives for Meta did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment. It remains unclear what proof Meta officials require that a WhatsApp account is associated with a Taliban user before blocking them. that widespread encryption — the main selling point for WhatsApp, promising to keep user content secure — would present"very serious consequences for law enforcement and national security agencies at all levels.