WhatsApp continues its initiative to share some of its user data with its parent company Facebook. In a post she published last night (Thursday), she explained that this is a problem understanding her message and that she now wants to “reverse” the issue more clearly. “We could have better explained the battle change,” the post said. In fact, the content of the things he initially posted led to the conclusion that bulk user data would be shared with Facebook.
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But this is not the case, as WhatsApp claims. In fact, not much will change. And almost all users have already agreed to share their data with Facebook. The company plans to show users a banner in the app explaining this. This is part of a move intended to encourage users to read the agreement and understand what will actually change and what will not change, or what already exists. The company will also offer an update to users once the change takes effect, starting May 15th.
The WhatsApp Photo: Getty
WhatsApp says the information it shares with Facebook does not include messages, group content, or call logs. The change is designed to allow users to communicate with companies within WhatsApp for Business. The commercial chat service that WhatsApp sells to companies to allow them to keep in contact with customers and even offer them purchases. A pilot has operated such a service for about a year in India and has proven itself enough to make Amazon feel threatened there.
So what is WhatsApp actually sharing? It is currently transmitting your IP address and information about your device in addition to the purchases you have made through it. But this information is not passed on in Europe and the UK, where residents are protected by extremely harsh privacy laws. However, privacy experts explained to the BBC that the general concern shows how unaware users are about the extent to which their data is shared between WhatsApp and Facebook, but also with Google, Microsoft and Apple.
But this panic also led to a sharp jump in users of two competitors – Signal and Telegram. But WhatsApp states that although the first is encrypted, the second is lower and its encryption is not enabled by default as is the case with WhatsApp. It should be noted that there is a basis for this argument, Telegram has already acquired encrypted application status although in practice it does not provide it for those who did not activate the setting previously. Telegram is also a private company, with its headquarters in Dubai and an agreement with the Kremlin that allows the Russian government to receive information from the company. On the other hand, WhatsApp explains that the signal may not receive information, but it also provides a poor user experience as a result. With the last argument one can argue and even quite easily.
Another WhatsApp argument trying to explain the information-sharing step is to keep the app free. According to them, companies pay for the right to use them and this is one way of leaving their use for free to other users. The tone of the WhatsApp message sounds satisfying and apologetic – we didn’t explain ourselves right and now we want to clarify our intent – that’s implicit. But in the end, it’s a movement that doesn’t really reflect well to the average user what is happening with their information.
