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Unveiling the Secret Side of Amazon: A Dive into Jeff Bezos’ Disappearing Messages

Jeff Bezos faced scrutiny from the FTC for his use of Signal's auto-delete function, accused of deleting messages to obstruct an antitrust lawsuit. Despite occasional use for work, he disabled disappearing messages months prior. Bezos acknowledged receiving a document-preservation notice but refused to confirm if it covered Signal messages. The FTC revealed Bezos used disappearing messages until 2022 despite legal advice on document preservation. The inquiry also probed Bezos's use of the one-question mark emailing method on Signal, potentially indicating substantive company discussions.

Staff Editor May 7, 2024

The recent flurry of questions directed at Amazon founder Jeff Bezos by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has shed light on his use of the encrypted messaging app Signal and its auto-delete function. According to a newly revealed transcript, Bezos faced inquiries regarding the intentional deletion of Signal messages by himself and other top Amazon executives as a means to eliminate potential evidence in an ongoing antitrust lawsuit against the tech giant.

In his 2022 testimony, Bezos admitted to occasionally utilizing Signal for work-related matters while clarifying that he disabled all disappearing message features “some number of months ago.” He emphasized that his Signal usage at work is confined to highly sensitive topics unrelated to the FTC investigation. When questioned about receiving a document-preservation notice linked to the FTC probe, Bezos refrained from divulging whether the notice encompassed Signal messages.

Despite having received legal advice on document preservation in 2020 and 2021, Bezos acknowledged using Signal’s disappearing messaging feature until 2022, prompting scrutiny from the FTC lawyer. Bezos defended his stance by asserting, “I never would have used Signal under any circumstances with disappearing messages on or off to discuss any complicated business issues. It just doesn’t make sense.”

The FTC’s interrogation extended to Bezos’s handling of the transition of leadership within Amazon, particularly concerning his communication with successor Andy Jassy. Bezos clarified that he initially informed Jassy of his CEO position via phone call rather than through Signal, challenging implications that substantive company matters were deliberated on the app.

Further inquiries probed into Bezos’s renowned one-question mark emailing method and its potential application on Signal. Bezos’s response, “I don’t know what that is,” hinted at a disconnect between his usual communication practices and any potential use of Signal for substantial corporate discussions.

In a separate transcript, Jeff Blackburn, who previously oversaw Amazon’s entertainment division, acknowledged using Signal at work to engage with Bezos, Jassy, and Hopkins, underscoring the prevalence of the app within Amazon’s top echelons. The revelations from these testimonies underscore the intricate interplay between modern communication tools and legal obligations in the corporate landscape, offering a peek into the dynamic world of tech titans and regulatory scrutiny.