Bader Al – Abri.
In 2009, the American Brian Acton and the Ukrainian Jan Koum succeeded in creating a program that simplified communication between people—free from the costs of SMS messages and from communication apps crowded with advertisements. They named it “What’s up?” as a gesture of greeting and connection. They designed it to be easy to use, and it quickly evolved from simple text messaging into effortless voice and video calling. It soon became one of the most widely used communication platforms worldwide—borderless, simple, free of charge, and unburdened by intrusive ads. It required no fees to download or verify, and it quickly became a tool used equally by the rich and the poor, the young and the old alike. It also offered a certain degree of privacy through end-to-end encryption, as well as the ability to delete or auto-delete conversations.
Some countries banned the app entirely—such as China, Russia, Cuba, and Iran before the recent war—and produced their own national communication platforms. Their reasons were primarily security-related, and their large populations made it easier to adopt alternative apps. Many of these countries also have limited openness to international tourism. Nevertheless, people in those countries often bypassed such bans using VPN tools, as WhatsApp had become a global phenomenon and arguably the most accessible of all communication platforms. Despite the presence of other apps—Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok, Telegram—WhatsApp offers a broad horizontal reach that connects people across widely different societies, shrinking the distance between East and West into a single closely linked digital world. This compelled some governments to lift bans and allow access to the platform, as Iran did after the recent war. Some states also found themselves unable to enforce penalties on VPN users because such a large portion of the population relies on it, rendering strict enforcement impractical. They concluded that the security cost of maintaining the ban was higher than lifting it, so they eased restrictions entirely or partially.
Other countries impose partial bans—most notably blocking voice calls. This is often justified for commercial reasons, as seen in the UAE and Oman. In some places, calls are technically allowed but deliberately slowed down, which affects long-term communication and tourism. The world relies heavily on WhatsApp for both domestic and international communication, and people see it as part of their individual rights—especially since they already pay monthly fees to local telecom companies. Limiting the app’s calling features while continuing to charge users for connectivity resembles a form of monopoly that capitalizes on user dependence. In contrast, in many poorer countries—or countries with much lower income levels than the Gulf—you’ll find that WhatsApp and similar communication platforms offer affordable calling options, along with flexible subscription packages, as is the case in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and others.
Tourism is also affected. Many tourists come from countries where WhatsApp is fully unrestricted. They rely on it to stay in touch with their families, coordinate with travel groups, or manage business affairs back home. Many are entrepreneurs and frequent callers. Faced with restrictions, they must either rely on their home country SIM cards—if they work in regions where calls are blocked—or resort to VPNs. This decreases the likelihood of purchasing local SIM cards and creates a negative impression of the host country and its level of reasonable personal freedoms.
As for its impact on security under the pretext of encryption, there are many apps that provide greater privacy, are difficult to monitor, and allow messages to be deleted instantly, enabling individual and group communication with complete confidentiality. Today, digital barriers are also hard to break, which has led to widespread use of VPNs on phones. However, the majority of WhatsApp and other social media usage is for social, networking, and informational purposes, as well as for handling business or financial matters. These platforms make communication easier and offer far more options than traditional voice calls over the phone network.
Personally, I support creativity in developing local social-communication apps—whether on the national level or among culturally similar countries—especially those that reflect regional identity. Yet at the same time, isolating ourselves from the wider world is impossible. Today’s global network and social media platforms have turned the world into a digitally connected village, even if geographically distant. WhatsApp, in particular, has become the digital tool that brings the distant near and enables seamless communication with everyone. Whereas a person in the past connected only with those in the same town or village, they now interact with people from many countries while sitting at home. Restricting WhatsApp to text messages alone makes little sense. People need to communicate with their global communities effortlessly through voice as well.
Moreover, many of our own children, relatives, and friends live abroad—studying, working, or simply traveling. They too need to communicate with family through this platform, with both voice and video. This is one of the basic personal freedoms within today’s open digital space.
