Google can now read your WhatsApp messages

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Privacy vs. AI Convenience

  • Many see this as part of a wider, uncomfortable trade-off: the most powerful AI features require deep integration and broad context about your life, which directly erodes privacy.
  • Some want AI “in a corner” (opened like any other app) rather than as an always-on OS layer touching every app, especially chat and email.
  • Others argue that future services and even basic tasks may become AI‑mediated only, making opting out increasingly impractical or costly.

Can Gemini Actually Read WhatsApp? (Disagreement)

  • The linked email says Gemini can now “help you use” Phone, Messages, WhatsApp, and Utilities “whether your Gemini Apps Activity is on or off,” and that some actions may be done “with help from Google Assistant or the Utilities app.”
  • Several commenters interpret this as Gemini having access to message content (at least for 72 hours), even when history is “off,” and call that a redefinition of “off.”
  • Others point to Google’s own documentation, which explicitly states Gemini cannot read or summarize WhatsApp messages or notifications, and accuse the article/title of being misleading clickbait.
  • Skeptics note Google’s history and legal language, and doubt documentation will remain accurate as features roll out.

How Access Might Work (Technical Speculation)

  • WhatsApp data is end‑to‑end encrypted in transit and stored in an encrypted database, but once rendered on the device, the OS can access it.
  • Suggested mechanisms: Android Accessibility Service, notification reading, screen capture/“screen reader” style access, or intents/App Actions that let an assistant compose and send messages.
  • Some stress that if Android can display the text, Google can read it at the OS level; E2E does not protect you from the platform owner.

Surveillance Capitalism & Ads

  • Strong sentiment that pervasive monitoring is driven by adtech and profiling, not user benefit.
  • Multiple comments argue users “voted” for ad‑funded models by refusing to pay, though others counter that real choice was never presented and even paid services now add ads.
  • Some see WhatsApp–Google integration as especially lucrative because so much commerce and business messaging now happens on WhatsApp.

User Reactions, Alternatives, and Regulation

  • Proposed mitigations: disabling Gemini/AICore, avoiding WhatsApp/Android/Google entirely, using Signal or de‑Googled ROMs (/e/OS, GrapheneOS, Librem, etc.).
  • Others say the feature is useful (e.g., “assistant” messaging) as long as it only acts when explicitly invoked and data isn’t used for training.
  • Calls for regulators (EU, state AGs) to treat OS‑level AI access to third‑party apps as an antitrust and privacy issue, likening it to past IE/App Store tying.