There was a violent backlash against WhatsApp in the last few days after it posted what appear to be revised privacy policies. Let me try to clarify what happened.
Some people think that the messaging app will now force those who use it to hand over their personal data to Facebook, which owns WhatsApp.
This is not entirely correct.
WhatsApp policies changed cosmetically and not in a way that gives Facebook more data. The bottom line is that Facebook already collects a lot of information about what people do on WhatsApp.
The confusion was the result of Facebook’s failed communications, distrust of the company, and incomplete data protection laws in the United States.
Here’s what changed with WhatsApp and what didn’t:
Facebook bought WhatsApp in 2014, and since 2016, almost everyone using the messaging app has been (usually unknowingly) sharing information about their activity with Facebook.
Facebook knows the phone numbers that are used, how often the app is opened, the screen resolution of the device, the estimated location from the internet connection and more, as explained in the my colleague Kashmir Hill five years ago.
Facebook uses this information to make sure WhatsApp works properly and to help a footwear company show an ad on Facebook.
Facebook cannot look at the content of text messages or phone calls because WhatsApp communications are encrypted. Facebook also says it does not keep records of who people communicate on WhatsApp, and WhatsApp contacts are not shared with Facebook.
WhatsApp has many positive aspects. It is easy to use and in-app communications are secure. But yes, WhatsApp is Facebook, a company that many do not trust.
There are alternatives, including Signal and Telegram, which have received a wave of new users recently. The digital privacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation says Signal and WhatsApp are good choices for most people. The Wall Street Journal also looked at the pros and cons of various popular messaging apps.
The reason WhatsApp recently notified app users about the revised privacy rules is that Facebook is trying to make WhatsApp a place to chat with an airline about a lost flight, search for bags and pay for things.
WhatsApp policies changed to reflect the possibility of business transactions involving the mix of activity between Facebook apps; for example, a bag browsing WhatsApp might appear later in your Instagram app.
Unfortunately, WhatsApp did a terrible job in explaining the new features of its privacy policy. Kash and I, a data privacy rock star, took a good amount of reports to understand.
I also want to mention the deepest reasons for the misunderstandings.
First, this is a hangover from Facebook’s history of being arrogant with our personal data and reckless with the way the company or its partners use them. It’s not uncommon for people to assume that Facebook changed WhatsApp policies in a bloody way.
Second, people have come to understand that privacy policies are confusing and that we really don’t have the power to make companies collect less data.
“That’s the problem with the nature of privacy law in the United States,” Kash said. “Whenever they tell you they’re doing it in a policy you probably haven’t read, they can do whatever they want.”
This means that digital services, including WhatsApp, give us an unattractive option. Either we give up control over what happens to our personal information or we do not use the service. This is.