WHATSAPP PRIVACY UPDATE TO MOVE FORWARD DESPITE CONTROVERSY, BACKLASH

Fri 19 February 2021:

Facebook Inc’s WhatsApp said on Thursday it will go ahead with its controversial privacy policy update but will allow users to read it at “their own pace” and will also display a banner providing additional information.

The messaging platform laid out fresh terms in January, aimed at increasing business transactions on the platform.

The policy update would allow owner Facebook and its subsidiaries collect user data, including their phone number and location, which sparked a global outcry and a rush of new users to competitors Telegram and Signal, among others.

WhatsApp’s new banner and privacy policy explainer. Image: WhatsApp

WhatsApp then moved to delay the new policy launch to May from February and sought to clarify the update was focused on allowing users to message with businesses and would not affect personal conversations, which will continue to have end-to-end encryption.

In its latest blog post, WhatsApp said it will start reminding users to review and accept updates to keep using the messaging platform.

“We’ve also included more information to try and address concerns we’re hearing,” it added.

According to The Verge In an announcement on Thursday, the company explained how users can read through the new policy and learn how business and personal messages — which have different privacy standards — are handled.

The new privacy policy primarily concerns messaging businesses on WhatsApp and what parts of your data those businesses have access to. Most WhatsApp messages are end-to-end encrypted, meaning they can only be accessed by the people actually talking.

But WhatsApp also lets users message businesses, and those messages aren’t extended the same protections.

The data in business messages can be used for commercial purposes like ad targeting on Facebook, and some of them are also stored on Facebook’s servers. WhatsApp’s privacy policy was an attempt to explain that change, but many users interpreted it as WhatsApp comprising the privacy focus it was known for.

Ahead of the new May 15th launch (moved from February 8th), WhatsApp plans to offer users the ability to review this new privacy policy inside its app. The company already tried to reassure users through WhatsApp’s Status feature, but now WhatsApp will include a banner that can be tapped to pull up the explanation of the new policy.

The company says it will eventually remind users to read the new policy and accept it to continue using the app as well.