Federal antitrust enforcers intensify scrutiny as more employees turn to instant messaging platforms like Slack, WhatsApp, and Signal for workplace communication, sidelining traditional email. The Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a stern warning on Friday, emphasizing that companies under investigation must preserve and produce records from these messaging apps.
Clarification on Preservation Obligations
In a joint announcement, the Justice Department and FTC revealed modifications to their communication directives to companies under investigation. The revised language explicitly mandates the preservation and submission of chat records from platforms like Slack and ephemeral messaging apps like WhatsApp and Signal. Non-compliance with these preservation requirements could result in significant penalties or even criminal charges for document destruction, cautioned the agencies.
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Rising Concerns and Recent Cases
The timing of this announcement coincides with mounting concerns among antitrust enforcers regarding the deletion of crucial chats and messages. Recently, both agencies have expressed apprehension over instances where pertinent communication records were not preserved.
Google’s Antitrust Suit and Preservation Sanctions
In the ongoing antitrust lawsuit against Alphabet Inc.’s Google, the Justice Department has petitioned the federal judge overseeing the case to penalize the company for failing to preserve internal communications among employees. Notably, a separate federal judge reprimanded Google’s top lawyer, Kent Walker, for the company’s deficient record-keeping practices that destroyed messages exchanged via Google Chats, the internal messaging platform.
FTC Allegations Against Amazon
In its investigations into Amazon.com Inc., the FTC leveled allegations against the e-commerce giant, implicating employees, including founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos, of utilizing the messaging app Signal to conceal communications from the regulator. Amazon refuted these allegations, asserting that it promptly informed the FTC about the Signal usage and diligently gathered Signal conversations from employees’ devices, permitting agency personnel to scrutinize the exchanges.
Heightened Vigilance and Accountability
The joint warning from the Justice Department and FTC underscores the heightened vigilance surrounding electronic communication records in the context of antitrust investigations. With the increasing reliance on instant messaging platforms in corporate settings, companies are reminded of their obligation to preserve and produce these records lest they face severe repercussions for non-compliance.
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