WhatsApp has started using status messages to remind its users of the messaging service’s commitment to your privacy ‘, following the recent confusion regarding changes to its privacy policy last month.
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“WhatsApp is now on Status,” the message begins. “We’ll let you know about new features and updates here. One thing that’s not new is our commitment to your privacy. WhatsApp cannot read or listen to your personal conversations as it is end – to – end encrypted. Stay tuned for more updates! “
The Stories-style-in-app messages started appearing for users in the US and UK over the weekend, while users in India reportedly received them longer. In a statement issued to The edge, WhatsApp explained the reasoning behind the step:
“There has been a lot of misinformation and confusion surrounding our recent update and we want to help everyone understand the facts about how WhatsApp protects people’s privacy and security,” a WhatsApp spokesman told The Verge. “From now on we will be providing updates to people on the Status tab so that people can hear directly from WhatsApp. Our first update reaffirms that WhatsApp cannot see your personal messages, nor Facebook, because it is protected by terminated encryption . “
WhatsApp first announced its new terms of use early last month, and the changes at the time suggested that WhatsApp would share additional data with Facebook, such as phone number, service-related information, IP address and transaction data. WhatsApp has since made it clear that the update does not affect the sharing of data with Facebook in terms of user chats or profile information, but rather the new terms apply to those who use the business chat feature.
Via social media posts, WhatsApp has assured users that updating its privacy policy does not affect the privacy of messages. It also added to the FAQ to address users’ privacy issues regarding sharing data with Facebook.
However, this did not stop the exodus of millions of users from the service to competing messaging programs such as Telegram and Signal, both of which quickly took advantage of the situation.
Telegram, meanwhile, has added users’ ability to import their chat history from WhatsApp so they don’t lose old conversations, while Signal recently received an update with several new features clearly designed to address former WhatsApp users .
Because of the confusion, WhatsApp says they have chosen to postpone the new changes to the privacy policy by three months, but that does not cancel it out.