WhatsApp has through a post made to its frequently asked questions section of its website sought to clarify the recent changes it made to its privacy policy.
About a week ago WhatsApp users were made aware that starting February 12th, they will have to decide on whether to share their WhatsApp data with Facebook or choose to quit the extremely popular messaging platform.
This move rubbed some users the wrong way and consequently registration to messaging platforms such as Telegram and Signal soared as more users sought more privacy-focused platforms.
To counter this, WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, has clarified that Facebook does not have access to personal (user to user) messages or location data. The changes to the privacy policy primarily affects business messaging (user to business).
So, in effect, Facebook will have access to data between a personal user and a WhatsApp business account. This will mainly be through Facebook allowing businesses to run ads that will allow customers to contact businesses through WhatsApp messaging.
Regardless, the clarification is less likely to achieve its intended objective. This is considering how the media has sensationalized the move and that Facebook has a particular penchant for being economical with the truth.
But this all goes back to the “No Free Lunch” principle. It’s either you pay for the product, or you are the product. In this case, it’s clear that WhatsApp users are the products.
Kevin is a tech enthusiast and the lead writer at MobiTrends.co.ke. He has been writing about smartphones and tech related topics since October 2012. About Us | Contact Us
