Agencies
To counter massive criticism from users globally, including India, over privacy concerns after the recent privacy policy update, WhatsApp on Sunday shared its own status on the messaging app to assure users of its commitment to their privacy.
In a set of four status posts from a contact named ‘WhatsApp’, WhatsApp has tried to allay concerns regarding user privacy to assure them of the safety of the platform after its recent update.
The first message on the status read: “We are committed to your privacy”. The other three messages were: ‘WhatsApp can’t read or listen to your personal conversation as they are end-to-end encrypted’, ‘WhatsApp can’t see your shared location’, and ‘WhatsApp doesn’t share your contacts with Facebook’.
Last week, WhatsApp had informed users about the changes in its terms of service and public policy, through an in-app notification last week. Users had till February 8 to agree to the new terms in order to continue using the platform.
This led to a user backlash and triggered memes on the internet over WhatsApp’s alleged sharing of user information with Facebook. Following backlash from its users, WhatsApp on Friday announced that it has delayed implementing its revised privacy policy till May.
In a series of tweets, the company confirmed that it is pushing back the date from February 8, 2021, to May, for now. “No one will have their account suspended or deleted on February 8, and we’ll be moving back our business plans until after May,” WhatsApp said.
A raging debate ensued after WhatsApp said it will update its terms of service and privacy policy around how it processes user data and partners with Facebook to offer integrations across the social media giant’s products.
Concerned about the privacy of their data, many users have thronged to rival messaging platforms such as Signal and Telegram that have seen millions of downloads in the past few days.
WhatsApp had recently released an official statement to clear the air about the rumours and speculations surrounding new terms of service and policies. Assuring its users of their privacy, WhatsApp said that the policy update does not affect their privacy with friends or family.
“We want to be clear that the policy update does not affect the privacy of your messages with friends or family in any way. Instead, this update includes changes related to messaging a business on WhatsApp, which is optional, and provides further transparency about how we collect and use data,” WhatsApp had said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Kashmir Monitor staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
