UN Instructs Senior Staff To Avoid Using WhatsApp After Bezos Phone Hack - Spokesman

(@FahadShabbir)

UN Instructs Senior Staff to Avoid Using WhatsApp After Bezos Phone Hack - Spokesman

UNITED NATIONS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 24th January, 2020) The United Nations has directed its senior personnel to avoid communicating via WhatsApp messenger in the wake of reports claiming that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman played a role in hacking Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos' phone using the platform, UN spokesperson Farhan Haq said in a press briefing on Thursday.

"At this stage, the senior officials at the UN have been instructed not to use WhatsApp, it's not supported as a secure mechanism," Haq said when asked whether UN chief Antonio Guterres had ever used the messenger to communicate with the Crown Prince. "I do not believe the Secretary-General uses it."

On Wednesday, UN Special Rapporteurs Agnes Callamard and David Kaye in their report called for an immediate investigation into the allegations that in May 2018, Bezos' phone was infiltrated by Saudi Arabia after he received a malicious file via WhatsApp. The kingdom denied any wrongdoings, and its embassy in Washington said that reports claiming otherwise were "absurd.

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Haq stated that the United Nations took note of the UN experts' report and will assess what further steps can be taken in this regard. He added that the organization is currently not involved into any investigation of the allegations.

On June 19, Callamard issued a report calling on the UN chief to launch a follow-up criminal probe of the killing of a Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi due to "credible evidence" that warrants further investigation of senior Saudi officials, including Crown Prince Mohammed. However, the UN did not start the probe, citing the lack of Guterres' authority to launch it.

Khashoggi went missing in October 2018 after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Riyadh initially denied any knowledge of the journalist's whereabouts but eventually admitted that the journalist was killed and dismembered inside the diplomatic facility.

Saudi authorities have charged 11 people with Khashoggi's murder.