- Briefing Your roundup of Asian tech and startup news that matter
Miguel Cordon · · 1 min readWhatsApp delays privacy policy update over data security concerns
According to the report, WhatsApp users had received a notification earlier this month informing them of a new privacy policy in the works for the messaging app. Part of the notification said that the messaging app has reserved the rights to share some user data with Facebook.
Late last week, WhatsApp said it would delay the launch of the new policy from next month to May 2021. The company also stated that the update focuses on allowing its users to message with businesses and will not affect end-to-end encrypted personal messaging.
“This update does not expand our ability to share data with Facebook,” it said in a statement. “While not everyone shops with a business on WhatsApp today, we think that more people will choose to do so in the future, and it’s important people are [made] aware of these services.”
It was recently reported that a petition was filed in an Indian court stating that WhatsApp’s update policy would threaten India’s data security as it verges on user surveillance. The competition board of Turkey had also launched an investigation into Facebook and WhatsApp regarding the same issue.
Editing by Collin Furtado and September Grace Mahino
(And yes, we’re serious about ethics and transparency. More information here.)
Stay updated on the go with our mobile app.
Get latest insights with smoother, more personalized experience through TIA mobile app.
