WhatsApp Ask Users To Share Personal Data With Facebook, Here’s How People React
Hanima Anand|Jan 12, 2021
As a part of The Facebook Company, WhatsApp is about to synchronize its data with Facebook, allowing other products of the company to access its users’ information.
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WhatsApp, a product of The Facebook Company, just alerted its users of a new privacy policy that comes into effect in February, 2021. Accordingly, WhatsApp will receive information from as well as share information with other Facebook Company products.
Users react to WhatsApp privacy policy
In response to the new policy from WhatsApp, many users worldwide have decided to abandon the app. Some said that even though uninstalling this app meant they lost some contacts, they couldn’t let Facebook access their personal data. A wave of WhatsApp privacy memes are also trending on Twitter following the alert.
A number of users have deleted WhatsApp and posted their decision on social media. They also called on to delete Instagram, another app acquired by Facebook as well.
Meanwhile, current rivals of WhatsApp benefit from this wave. Telegram and Signal witness a rise in their downloads while Facebook’s product saw a significant drop in their download charts in both UK and US.
What's included in WhatsApp's new privacy policy?
In fact, Facebook acquired WhatsApp back in 2014 since when the app has shared its data with its mother company. However, at that time, it’s the users’ decision that allows Facebook to access their data or not.
The new privacy policy requires all WhatsApp users to share their personal data with Facebook Companies. These types of information include:
- Phone number
- Interactions with other WhatsApp users
- Information of WhatsApp account
- IP address
- Browser details
- Language
- Time zone
According to the app developers, they may use the information acquired from WhatsApp to help ‘operate, provide, improve, understand, customize, support, and market’ their services and offerings to Facebook Companies’ customers.
Comments from specialists
Jake Moore, a cyber-security specialist at the United Kingdom Essential Security against Evolving Threats commented that it was predictable that people would switch to more privacy-focused apps and abandon WhatsApp following the new policy.
‘Being told that the app is unavailable unless you agree may not always be the best way as people then feel forced to giving away their data. We may even see people move away from these apps to more privacy-focused apps which more delicately protect our data.
It is incredibly important that users do all they can to protect their private information, and they must realize how damaging it can be if it gets into the wrong hands.'
Previously, Facebook was involved in a number of scandals related to users’ data protection. Mark-Zuckerberg's company was even accused of stalking users without their awareness.
Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, used to tweet about the silent data tracking action of Facebook when he was attacked by Mark’s PR team.
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