Tencent has formally requested GitHub to remove several open-source projects that allow users to export or analyze their WeChat chat records. According to PANews, some project leaders have publicly stated that they have ceased maintenance due to legal pressure. On January 22, Tencent responded, explaining that these projects read WeChat chat records by reverse engineering the client and cracking local database keys. This bypasses encryption measures, posing risks to user and third-party data privacy and client security, and could be exploited by malicious entities.
