Users are leaving WhatsApp en masse after the messaging service introduced controversial new terms and conditions.
WhatsApp, which has more than two billion users worldwide, started informing users about the changes earlier this week, alarming many with mentions of sharing the app’s data with the Facebook controller, despite having previously promised never do that.
This has led users to flee to companies like Signal and Telegram, which claim to offer complete end-to-end encryption to keep user data secure.
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The new WhatsApp terms and conditions, which users must view and accept when opening the app, include the warning that the data will now be shared with Facebook.
Although this data does not include messages sent or calls made using WhatsApp or a user’s location, it does include personal details used to set up an account, such as name and phone number, as well as information about the exact device model that is using, as well as the IP address.
“We want to make it clear that updating the policy does not affect the privacy of your messages with friends or family in any way,” wrote WhatsApp on a company blog explaining the changes.
“Instead, this update includes changes related to sending messages to a company on WhatsApp, which is optional, and provides more transparency about how we collect and use the data.”
Users are informed that they must accept the new terms by February 8, or they will not be able to access WhatsApp.
The warning does not apply to users in the UK and Europe, but it has still been sent to devices in those regions. WhatsApp added that its practice of sharing data with Facebook was not new.
Users have now migrated to alternative services like Telegram, which has seen its user base almost double in the space of a few weeks. The app promises to offer complete end-to-end encryption to its users, keeping their conversations private.
Elsewhere, Signal, which received support from the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, recently tweeted that its user base has grown from about 10 million to more than 50 million users in a matter of days. The platform added more capacity to handle the sudden increase and introduced broader group chats and better image sharing to support new users.
Via BBC