A Dutch probe was closed previous year after WhatsApp addressed concerns. “There would have been no partnership between our two companies if we had to compromise on the core principles that will always define our company, our vision and our product”, Koum said.
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“Facebook has a long history of making policies and decisions that go directly against the idea of users” online privacy.
WhatsApp’s plan-of-action with its new measure is that when a user has WhatsApp and Facebook active on his smart-phone then Facebook can select phone-numbers on the WhatsApp list via a unique identifier of the phones. Whether it’s hearing from your bank about a potentially fraudulent transaction, or getting notified by an airline about a delayed flight, many of us get this information elsewhere, including in text messages and phone calls.
While WhatsApp customers can opt out from their information being used for ad targeting by Facebook – by unticking the data sharing box having scrolled down the very many pages of terms and conditions – they will not be able to stop their data being shared by WhatsApp to its owner Facebook.
Your phone number won’t be added to your Facebook profile, and your WhatsApp messages will not be shared onto Facebook for others to see.
So, Why the fuss? After all, privacy has become an increasingly sensitive subject and no company can dilute it without incurring users concern.
WhatsApp announced that it would begin sharing user data with its parent company, Facebook, to “improve user ads and products experiences”.
WhatsApp, which has been admirably uncluttered in terms of advertising, says the change will not mean that banner ads will be appearing on its platform – so technically it will still not carry advertising – but that the “move will explore ways for you to communicate with businesses that matter to you”, a curious inversion of the dynamic of what happens in the real world of marketing communications where it’s not so much you that sets out to communicate with businesses but vice versa.
WhatsApp says will allow the companies to better fight spam, track basic usage statistics and display more relevant advertisements and friend suggestions to users. Targeted advertisements are another way of increasing revenues by understanding consumers.
However, WhatsApp is keen to reiterate that users’ encrypted messages will remain private and the California-based firm won’t post, sell, share, or give your phone number to advertisers.
“The manner in which so-called consent is sought to be taken is highly deceptive in as much as nearly the entire community of users of WhatsApp in India are not equipped to even read, much less comprehend, the consequences of the terms and conditions on the basis whereupon, WhatsApp is pretending to obtain consent of the users”, the plea filed by advocate Tanoodbhav Singhdev said. However, if they read the new terms and conditions, which not many internet users do before they click, agree, they will find that there is a way to not put the phone number where a legion of hungry brands could get it.
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The new change, though, will permit business accounts who now communicate through SMS, such as airlines advising of delayed flight or banks notifying of large withdrawals to communicate via WhatsApp – a move that users may fear will herald a slow drip, drip of advertising, or spam, into the app. In WhatsApp Settings If you’ve already agreed to the new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, you can still opt out from your WhatsApp settings.
