WhatsApp to go ahead with controversial privacy policy

Facebook-owned messaging app WhatsApp announced that it will go ahead with its controversial privacy policy and display a banner in the app to provide users with more information that they can read at their own pace. The company also criticized rival apps saying that they know less information than WhatsApp. 

Last month, WhatsApp announced its updated privacy policy which will mandate data sharing with the parent company Facebook and other Facebook companies. The company said that users would be required to accept the new privacy policy before February 8th in order to continue using the app. 

Also Read: WhatsApp Revenue and Usage Statistics

Shortly after, users started looking for WhatsApp alternative apps such as Telegram and Signal, and many of them removed WhatsApp due to privacy concerns. 

Signal’s downloads skyrocketed after WhatsApp controversy and Elon Musk’s ‘Use Signal’ tweet. The app’s category rankings increased by 750% in a very short period. 

Following the severe criticism and a lawsuit filed in India, WhatsApp postponed the enforcement of the updated privacy policy to May 15 and have been trying to clarify the changes in the policy saying that personal messages won’t be affected. 

The company released another blog post yesterday and announced it will move ahead with the controversial policy and provide more information to ‘clear up any confusion’. 

‘’In the coming weeks, we’ll display a banner in WhatsApp providing more information that people can read at their own pace. We’ve also included more information to try and address concerns we’re hearing. Eventually, we’ll start reminding people to review and accept these updates to keep using WhatsApp,’’ said the company in the blog post. 

Meanwhile, WhatsApp also criticized its rivals that claim they don’t read messages or they are better than WhatsApp. 

‘’During this time, we understand some people may check out other apps to see what they have to offer,’’ said WhatsApp. ‘’We’ve seen some of our competitors try to get away with claiming they can’t see people’s messages – if an app doesn’t offer end-to-end encryption by default that means they can read your messages.’’

‘’Other apps say they’re better because they know even less information than WhatsApp.’’

What do you think?