Hacker breaches TeleMessage system used by US officials, raising security concerns

The big picture: A breach at TeleMessage highlights a critical vulnerability in modifying end-to-end encrypted messaging apps to include archiving features. While TeleMessage claims it preserves Signal's encryption during communication, the process of capturing and storing decrypted messages for archival purposes inherently introduces new security risks. Once these messages are archived on external servers, they become susceptible to unauthorized access if those systems are not properly secured.quately protected.

An investigation by 404 Media has uncovered a major security breach at TeleMessage, an Israeli company that provides modified versions of encrypted messaging apps – most notably Signal – to US government agencies and private-sector clients for message archiving. The breach, which exposed sensitive communications, has raised urgent concerns about the security of high-level government and organizational messaging.

The issue gained public attention after a Reuters photograph captured Mike Waltz, a former National Security Adviser to Donald Trump, using a Signal-like app ...