WhatsApp Messenger is a famous American freeware messaging platform owned by Facebook. It helps the users to send text messages, voice messages, make video and voice calls and more. Its application can run on mobile as well as computer. It got released in 2009 and now it has over 2 billion users. However, the new Whatsapp Privacy policies have resulted in public outcry. Many people have decided to uninstall the app because of the new policy. It is going to come in effect on February 8, 2021. The new privacy policy is to share the data of the user with Facebook. That is why many people have changed to different alternatives like Signal App. As a result, there is a significant drop in the new download of Whatsapp.
Whatsapp first began to share the data to Facebook on 2016 therefore from then onwards the users did not feel safe. The people joining Whatsapp have to read its 8,000-word user agreement which is a difficult exercise. Then because of many policy changes Brian Acton the co-founder of Whatsapp left Facebook and began the non-profit app called Signal. It is an encrypted messaging app. At the moment Whatsapp new privacy policy declares that the data will not only get shared to Facebook but also to other businesses that use the Facebook-WhatsApp platform. Have a look at the claims of Facebook and Whatsapp regarding the new policy and decide for yourselves if it is safe for you to use it or not.
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Can Whatsapp read your private messages?
Whatsapp claims that they cannot read your private messages as they are end to end encrypted. The company is also assuring the users that the content of the private messages will not get shared to Facebook or any third-party app. But they do collect information to offer the users personalised service such as send relevant ads, make suggestions etc. This means the app collects your meta-data which is similar to real data as it monitors the actions of the user so it is a violation of our privacy.
Even if you do not give the Whatsapp permission to read your location, it actually can know your geographical location through the IP Address and can also share it with Facebook. Therefore, the app may say that they cannot read the location but it is possible for them to read it.
Whatsapp says that it stores your contact details in ‘cryptographic hash’. This means that it is difficult to read the phone number as it is in a different format. However, the contact information is part of your account information which gets saved in Whatsapp. Therefore, Whatsapp can share the information with Facebook as it can identify the user easily. Both the apps get linked as soon as you download it.
Whatsapp shared that its new privacy policy only affects the interactions with business accounts. This shows us that Whatsapp collects and saves information about the business interactions. Even sharing an article from the internet with Whatsapp share button is a business interaction.
This is a truth about Whatsapp privacy policy and data. You have to decide and come to a decision soon because your privacy is at stake.
Also read: Top 3 New Feature Updates for WhatsApp that you Must Know
