Newly unsealed emails reveal that when Meta was still called Facebook, CEO Mark Zuckerberg ordered his executives to find a way to learn how people were using competing apps like Snapchat, even if the information was encrypted.
Advertisement"Given how quickly they're growing, it seems important to figure out a new way to get reliable analytics about them," Zuckerberg wrote of Snapchat in the email.
The app "doesn't (can't) decrypt data," a Facebook employee noted in an email to Zuckerberg included in a court document.
While the existence of Onavo's work to track rival app usage has been reported, details of Meta's actions, the executives involved, and the surrounding communications were unreported.
AdvertisementAdvertisers suing Meta said the company failed for years to disclose its use of Onavo technology to intercept rivals' analytics traffic.
Persons:
Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg, Javier Olivan, Snapchat, Olivan, Guy Rosen, Rosen, —, Mike Schroepfer, Kali Hays
Organizations:
Service, Facebook, Business, Meta, Wall Street, YouTube, SSL, TechCrunch
Locations:
California, Onavo, khays@insider.com