Despite WhatsApp's move to adopt end-to-end encryption by default for its billion users around the world, the policies of the instant messaging app are too weak to protect user privacy from governments, says a digital rights group's new report.

Even tech giants such as Apple, Facebook, and Google can do more to fully stand behind their users, said the Electronic Frontier Foundation's annual report entitled "Who Has Your Back".

"WhatsApp does not explicitly state that it prohibits third-party access to its user data, nor does it say that third parties are prohibited from allowing WhatsApp user data to be used for surveillance purposes," the report released this week said.