- WhatsApp is changing its terms of service to force users to share personal data, including phone numbers and locations, with its parent company, Facebook.
- Some critics, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk, suggested that users switch to the encrypted messaging apps Signal and Telegram.
- A WhatsApp representative told Ars Technica that the move was to allow companies to store WhatsApp chats using Facebook’s infrastructure.
- The messaging app sells itself as a service focused on privacy.
- Visit the Business Insider home page for more stories.
WhatsApp, the encrypted messaging app that sells itself as a service focused on privacy, will begin to force users to share personal data with Facebook, its parent company.
In an announcement sent to users on Wednesday, WhatsApp said users would have to agree to allow Facebook and its subsidiaries to collect WhatsApp data, including users’ phone numbers, contact phone numbers, locations and more .
If users do not agree by February 8, they will lose access.
The move prompted users to delete their WhatsApp accounts and switch to smaller encrypted messaging apps like Signal and Telegram.
“Signal and Telegram are now better alternatives if you’re concerned about your privacy,” tweeted TechCrunch editor Mike Butcher. He shared comparisons between the data WhatsApp collects and what Signal and Telegram collect.
—Mike Butcher (@mikebutcher) January 7, 2021
Tesla CEO Elon Musk was among those who recommended exchange services to users, tweeting, “Use signal.”
Nine hours earlier, Musk appeared to have criticized Facebook, through a sardonic meme, as responsible for the rebels who attacked the United States Capitol on Wednesday.
Facebook bought WhatsApp in 2014 and, in 2016, gave users a unique chance to opt out of sharing app data with Facebook.
A WhatsApp spokeswoman told Ars Technica that the move would allow companies to store WhatsApp chats using Facebook’s broader infrastructure.
A WhatsApp spokesman did not clarify why the platform decided to make the change, but added that it would not affect users in the EU and the UK.
“There are no changes in WhatsApp data sharing practices in the European region (including the United Kingdom) arising from the updated Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. To avoid any doubt, it is still the case that WhatsApp does not share the WhatsApp user European region data with Facebook for Facebook to use this data to improve their products or ads, “said the spokesman.
WhatsApp founders Brian Acton and Jan Koum left the company in 2017 and 2018. Acton talked about his departure, which followed the decision to introduce ads on WhatsApp, and asked people to “delete Facebook”.
Koum’s departure was also surrounded by reports that he had come into conflict with management over the company’s approach to user privacy on WhatsApp.