Data on WhatsApp

WhatsApp CEO Will Cathcart believes a bill to give British law enforcement "legal access" to the messenger's encrypted messages would undermine the app's security.

"We live in an age of the internet where cyber attacks are on the rise," the Financial Times quoted him as saying on Wednesday. So I think it is wrong to try to weaken security now." He described as "baffling" the authorities' policy on the internet space when much of the public sector operates digitally.

The British parliament has been considering an internet safety bill since spring. It should limit the distribution of traumatic material as well as reduce the number of cases of psychological abuse of children online.

In July the Home Office announced an amendment that would allow the media regulator Ofcom to fine internet companies up to £18m or 10% of annual turnover for failing to meet child protection standards on the web. The adjustments will require companies to install new software on encrypted platforms or create their own mechanisms to detect and remove material that is harmful to children.

According to the National Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse, online harassment of children by criminals has risen by more than 80% in the Kingdom in four years to an average of 120 incidents a week.