“If you are not paying for the product, you are the product” this popular quote from Netflix’s 2020 documentary ‘Social Dilemma’ is now making more sense. You might have received the new privacy policy alert on your WhatsApp. Yes, WhatsApp/Facebook companies will play with your all private and sensitive data from February 8th. Currently, the new privacy policy update has options to accept or ignore, but if you have checked it carefully then it also says that you will have to accept the updated privacy policy by February 8th 2021 to continue using the WhatsApp application.
In case you don’t know, accepting this privacy policy update means you are allowing WhatsApp to share your all personal data with Facebook companies. It is scary because there are no other options to ignore/skip or opt-out from this. So, if you want to continue using the WhatsApp then you will have to share your all WhatsApp data including financial and other sensitive data with Facebook companies. It gets even scarier after digging the new WhatsApp Privacy Policy deeper.
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If you check the detailed WhatsApp Privacy Policy here, it says the WhatsApp will be able to share Transactions and Payments Data as well as Location Information. It is clearly mentioned that information and data can be collected and shared with Facebook companies if WhatsApp believes it is needed.
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What WhatsApp is asking from users is way more than a usual practice, it’s now literally forcing its users to share everything. WhatsApp is trying to collect more data than ever including battery level, signal strength, app version, and identifiers unique to Facebook Companies. Not just WhatsApp but Facebook and Facebook companies will process and use these data, and we know how bad Facebook is at protecting its user’s data.
WhatsApp has added a new privacy policy section about users location data. It says that you need to give access to your location data if you want to continue sharing location with your friends and family. Even if you refuse to do so, the platform will anyhow collect information like IP addresses and phone number area code to figure out your location.
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The Facebook-owned social media application WhatsApp is also suspicious about the user’s data once the account is deleted. According to the WhatsApp policy, user’s data will not be wiped off immediately after deleting your WhatsApp account and users will have to dig deeper for the same, which would be nearly impossible for most of the WhatsApp users.
If you are just removing the application from your device then all of your data will remain on the WhatsApp server. Even if you delete the WhatsApp account from its settings then a copy of your data conversed with other users will remain on the server. Basically, even if you completely delete your WhatsApp account from its setting, WhatsApp will be able to process and use your data the way it wants.
WhatsApp is well aware of its reach among users globally, it is undoubtedly the most used social media application around the globe. Facebook which unfortunately owns the WhatsApp is squeezing the most popular social media application and its user’s data shamelessly. Users following the technology news might already know how bad Facebook is at protecting the user’s data. We have read several times how Facebook’s data have been manipulated and abused by its partner and other companies to benefit some individual, group and companies.
WhatsApp has become an important part of every user’s personal and professional platform for communication such users are now stuck with the platform despite its controversies and shady practices mostly after its acquisition to Facebook.
The new WhatsApp privacy policy is alarming for every single WhatsApp and internet users. It’s time when we will have to be very careful about our online privacy, we need to be very careful about our data that we are sharing on the internet or remember this popular meme.
This is the time when we have to give importance to our data privacy, do not just allow for every permission an application is asking on your phone. We will have to be informed and think before giving any kind of access permission to mobile applications. The permissions like Location, Device Info, Contacts, Calls, Audio-Video Recording and Media etc are very sensitive, it can not be given to any random mobile application.
Allow sensitive permissions only if the application is very reliable and keeping users informed about its privacy policy and how they are protecting user’s data. User’s data and its privacy is the most important thing nowadays; this is time we should choose data privacy over WhatsApp and start looking for alternatives which are more reliable, safe and secure.
