Meta Platforms Inc. is facing a significant legal challenge over its WhatsApp messaging service's privacy claims, with an international group of plaintiffs filing a lawsuit that questions the integrity of the platform's encryption promises.

Core Allegations Against Meta

The lawsuit, filed Friday in US District Court in San Francisco, centers on Meta's claims about WhatsApp's end-to-end encryption feature. The plaintiffs allege that Meta's privacy assertions are fundamentally false, claiming the company can "store, analyze, and can access virtually all of WhatsApp users' purportedly 'private' communications." This directly contradicts WhatsApp's in-app messaging that states "only people in this chat can read, listen to, or share" the messages.

WhatsApp's Encryption Claims Under Scrutiny

Meta has positioned end-to-end encryption as a central feature of WhatsApp, marketing it as a security measure where messages are only accessible to the sender and recipient, not the company itself. The encryption is reportedly turned on by default across the platform. However, the plaintiffs argue that despite these public assurances, Meta maintains the ability to access user communications through its storage and analysis systems.

The complaint references "whistleblowers" as sources for these allegations, though the lawsuit does not specify their identities or provide detailed information about their claims. The plaintiffs assert that Meta workers can gain access to users' private messages, contradicting the company's public stance on message privacy.

Meta's Response and Defense

Meta has strongly rejected the allegations, with spokesperson Andy Stone calling the lawsuit "frivolous" and "a frivolous work of fiction." The company emphasized its long-standing use of encryption technology, stating that "WhatsApp has been end-to-end encrypted using the Signal protocol for a decade." Stone categorically denied any claims that WhatsApp messages are not encrypted, describing such assertions as "categorically false and absurd."

Meta has indicated it will pursue sanctions against the plaintiffs' counsel, suggesting the company views the legal action as without merit and potentially vexatious.

Legal Representation and Next Steps

The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys from multiple law firms, including Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and Keller Postman. The legal team is seeking court certification for a class-action lawsuit, which would potentially represent WhatsApp's billions of users worldwide. Jay Barnett from Barnett Legal, one of the plaintiff's lawyers, declined to comment on the case.

The lawsuit represents a significant challenge to Meta's privacy claims and could have substantial implications for how the company handles user data and communicates about its security features. The case highlights ongoing concerns about digital privacy and the extent to which technology companies can access user communications despite encryption promises.

Meta Platforms announced a major strategic shift on January 14, laying off more than 1,000 employees within its Reality Labs division as the company retreats from its metaverse-first vision. The cuts represent a significant downsizing of the division's workforce and signal a decisive pivot toward AI-powered wearables and mobile integration.

Workforce Reduction Details

The layoffs impact approximately 10% of Reality Labs' total workforce, affecting over 1,000 of the division's 15,000 employees. A company spokesperson explained the strategic rationale behind the decision, stating that the move is part of broader efforts to reallocate resources.

"This is part of that effort, and we plan to reinvest the savings to support the growth of wearables this year," the spokesperson told Bloomberg, adding that the company had previously indicated this strategic shift in December.

Strategic Pivot from VR to Wearables

The restructuring marks a significant departure from Meta's metaverse-first approach that gained prominence during the pandemic and led to the company's rebranding from Facebook to Meta in October 2021. Reality Labs, created around the same time as the rebrand, has accumulated losses exceeding $70.00 billion since its inception.

According to an internal memo from CTO Andrew Bosworth, Meta aims to become "more sustainable" by pivoting its metaverse investments toward mobile devices while reducing virtual reality expenditures. The company previously announced in December its intention to shift investment focus from metaverse development toward wearables technology.

Gaming Operations Severely Impacted

The restructuring has particularly affected Meta's gaming ambitions, resulting in immediate closures of several VR game studios. The shuttered studios include:

• Armature
• Sanzaru
• Twisted Pixel

While VR fitness app Supernatural will continue supporting its current offering, development of new content and features has been placed on hold. Despite these closures, Tamara Sciamanna, director of Oculus Studios, emphasized gaming's continued importance in an internal memo.

"Gaming remains the cornerstone of our ecosystem. With this change we are shifting our investment to focus on our third-party developers and partners to ensure long-term sustainability," she reportedly wrote.

Previous Workforce Adjustments

This marks the latest in a series of workforce reductions within Reality Labs. In April 2025, the company previously laid off employees working on VR fitness game Supernatural, though specific numbers were not disclosed at that time.

The current restructuring represents Meta's most significant retreat from its ambitious metaverse vision, as the company seeks to balance innovation with financial sustainability while positioning itself in the emerging AI wearables market.