The legal battle between Texas and Meta has escalated again, this time over the privacy promises behind WhatsApp’s encryption system. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against Meta and its messaging platform WhatsApp, accusing the companies of misleading users about how secure their conversations actually are.
Filed in Harrison County, the lawsuit claims WhatsApp publicly promotes its platform as fully encrypted and private, while allegedly still being able to access large portions of users’ communications. According to the complaint, the companies created a false impression that no one — including Meta itself — could view or access messages sent through the app.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton argued that consumers were led to believe their conversations were fully protected. In a statement, Paxton said WhatsApp markets itself as a secure communication platform but fails to deliver the level of privacy it promises.
Meta strongly rejected the accusations. Company spokesperson Andy Stone responded publicly, saying the allegations are inaccurate and insisting WhatsApp cannot read users’ end-to-end encrypted messages.
The lawsuit is seeking financial penalties and a court order that would stop Meta and WhatsApp from accessing Texans’ communications without explicit user consent. Texas also referenced media reports tied to a federal investigation and whistleblower complaints submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission regarding claims that some WhatsApp data may not have been as protected as users were led to believe.
The case was brought under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, one of the state’s main consumer protection laws. It is also the latest in a string of aggressive privacy-related legal actions launched by Paxton’s office against major technology companies.
Earlier in 2025, Google agreed to pay US$1.375 billion to settle Texas claims related to user data privacy practices. More recently, Texas also sued Netflix, accusing the streaming platform of collecting consumer data without proper consent and designing addictive experiences targeted at younger users. Netflix has denied those allegations, calling the claims misleading and inaccurate.
The new lawsuit adds further pressure on Meta as regulators and governments worldwide continue increasing scrutiny over how tech companies handle encryption, user privacy, and personal data.
