In the Ted Talk, The Future of Digital Communication and Privacy, Will Cathcart, the head of WhatsApp, discusses the shift in technology as it pertains to Covid-19, and the effects that the pandemic has or will have on our society when it comes to communication and privacy. Cathcart tells us that he believes the long term impact of Covid on technology in our daily lives will be the realization that the things we thought we could only do face to face, can also be done digitally.

This Ted Talk was done virtually, as it was made in the midst of Covid-19 in 2020, and revolves around Cathcart being asked questions by an interviewer from Ted, as well as from the community, where random questions are sent in to be answered by him. Being the head of WhatsApp gives Cathcart a unique perspective on the future of communication and privacy, and an even more important one as Covid has forced us to go digital for the majority of tasks we wouldn’t otherwise do digitally. There is a discussion about something referred to as “End to End Encryption”, which Cathcart explains as a way to send a message or call someone and know that they’re the only one who will see it. This brings about the controversy of whether or not we should change to a model with some other entity or business having access to users’ conversations, or if we should keep the privacy limited to the two users communicating. The concept of privacy is extremely complex and multifaceted, especially in this day and age, and obtaining it is a freedom and right we possess in the United States, but that is not to say that there aren’t some concerns and inherent dangers when it comes to this privacy. Cathcart discusses that when using WhatsApp, you are ensured privacy between yourself and the person you are speaking to, but that there are ways to flag certain conversations that could be inherently dangerous, whether that be sharing innapropriate photos or other illegal content, as well as conversations about terrorism and more. There is a very fine line between the right to privacy and overstepping on that right. Cathcart tries to help analyze this line as it becomes more complicated with the increased usage of technology. 

Technology is a wonderful thing that, when utilized properly, can be a powerful tool for good. But there is still a lot of controversy in regards to what constitutes privacy and how it should be handled when it comes to technology and communication. I think that Cathcart does a really great job trying to make sense of this controversy, and what he believes to be the future of communication and privacy.