Security News > 2020 > July > Facebook, Others, Block Govt Requests on Hong Kong User Data
Facebook, WhatsApp and Telegram will deny law enforcement requests for user data in Hong Kong as they assess the impact of a new national security law enacted last week.
Facebook and its messaging app WhatsApp said in separate statements Monday that they would freeze the review of government requests for user data in Hong Kong, "Pending further assessment of the National Security Law, including formal human rights due diligence and consultations with international human rights experts."
The legislation criminalizes some pro-democracy slogans like the widely used "Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our time," which the Hong Kong government has deemed has separatist connotations.
Spokesman Mike Ravdonikas said Monday that Telegram understands "The importance of protecting the right to privacy of our Hong Kong users." Telegram has been used broadly to spread pro-democracy messages and information about the protests in Hong Kong.
"Telegram has never shared any data with the Hong Kong authorities in the past and does not intend to process any data requests related to its Hong Kong users until an international consensus is reached in relation to the ongoing political changes in the city," he said.