WhatsApp updated its terms and privacy policy recently, sparking a huge row among users and launching a mass exodus from the platform. The sudden irritant was WhatsApp's guidance that the users should be willing to share their data with Facebook.
Does that mean FB is reading your messages? Well, the update does not impact how people communicate privately with friends or family. WhatsApp is not reading private messages.
The privacy policy update clarifies how WhatsApp has been collecting user metadata for their own functionality, and the operational update of the App is towards how users communicate with businesses, according to Indian tech policy think tank founder Kazim Rizvi.
Here are a few points on why accepting the new WhatsApp policy is not a threat to privacy.
Are my personal chats in WhatsApp secure?
Yes - as has always been the case. Your messages with your family and friends remain protected with end-to-end encryption, which means no one can see them (except the sender and receiver) - not WhatsApp or Facebook. WA uses Signal Protocol.
What about financial transactions data?
Financial Transaction data is not covered in the Privacy Policy update and they don't have access to a user's UPI or payments data. WhatsApp's UPI enabled payments service is governed by the WhatsApp India Payments Privacy Policy.
What if I'm not on Facebook?
The major change is that WhatsApp business users using WA API will now have the option of using FB's cloud server to host their chats, which was not the case before. So, WA business users can now choose to receive, as per their own consent, secure hosting services from Facebook to help manage their communications with their customers on WhatsApp. Many businesses rely on WhatsApp to communicate with their customers and clients.
Moreover, the user will know if they are talking to a WhatsApp API on Facebook and can opt-out while businesses can also choose not to host chats on Facebook.
Should You accept the New WhatsApp Policy?
What we need to understand is that user consent is still there, and users are being made aware of how their data is collected, and users can opt not to communicate with a business account, and they will be informed of the same through a pop-up label that will appear on their window.
WhatsApp is trying is to make things more transparent and clear, and it is normal to agree to terms of service before you use a service under standard contractual terms. Moreover, it is important that those who are on the App are aware of the new terms and conditions. Therefore, in order to continue using WhatsApp, users will need to accept the PP and TOS, by February 8, 2021.
Is Facebook Reading Your Personal Messages?
No, FB will not have access to your personal messages.
