![]() ![]() At the absolute minimum, ensure your messages are as secure as can be and that only you and the recipients can read them (look for “end-to-end encryption”). Dig into what they do, which pieces of data they collect and use. ![]() On a similar note, this may be a good time to brush up on all those T&Cs tied to your favourite apps. We regularly remind people that it’s time for a security password spring clean whenever a major breach takes place. As with all things, informed choices are the best choices. This misstep isn’t going to kill WhatsApp, and if you still want to use it, don’t worry. People will use what they feel most comfortable with. The data collection genie is out of the bottle, and yet it may not matter too much. That is to say, you may not have known prior to this how much…or little…your favourite apps collect.īut now you do. Simply by having to explain the differences between forms of messaging, data collection is thrown into sharp relief. Writers have described this potential migration away from WhatsApp as “self-inflicted”, and that seems to be an accurate summary. What happens after that, is lots of articles appear explaining what to do if you want to switch to other services. This is not ideal and tends to lead to confusion. Messages are still subject to the same privacy they were previously, and neither WhatsApp nor Facebook can read your messages or hear your calls.Īdditionally, more clarifications had to be made that the changes don’t apply to EU/EEA/UK regions despite people in those areas being shown a different privacy policy popup. They stressed that the upcoming update is related to messaging businesses on WhatsApp. This situation wasn’t ideal for WhatsApp, who had to clarify the mixed messages spreading online. This would naturally be a cause for concern for some people. Aspects which people objected to included some data remaining on a device even after deleting an account, lines about “respecting privacy” being removed from the privacy policy, and things like phone numbers being shared with Facebook. The key focus of concern around the update, was how data would be shared going forward. Regardless of how everything else about this notification panned out, WhatsApp should be applauded for giving everyone plenty of forewarning.and what didn’t Often, privacy policy and EULA changes spring from nowhere, giving little to no time at all to digest them. Giving users a bit of time to see the upcoming changes, and work out if they want to be part of it, is good and should be encouraged. After the initial burst of “Is this genuine?”, follows the part where I try to dig out the parts that have changed and see how it compares to what went before. Generally, I’m somewhat suspicious whenever a trusted app starts popping messages, or anything else I wasn’t expecting. You can also visit the Help Center if you would prefer to delete your account. After this date, you’ll need to accept the new terms to continue using WhatsApp. The message read:īy tapping Agree, you accept the new terms, which take effect on February 8, 2021. WhatsApp users found themselves facing down an in-app notification this past week, letting them know of upcoming privacy policy changes. But what, you may ask, actually happened? Is there a problem? Are you at risk? Or should you keep using your apps as you were previously? Setting the scene Initial reports may have worried a lot of folks, leading to inevitable clarifications and corrections. WhatsApp has been in the news recently after changes to its privacy policy caused a surge of interest in rival messaging app Signal. ![]()
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