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WhatsApp clarifies privacy practices after surge in Signal and Telegram users - The Verge
Jan 12, 2021 1 min, 43 secs
The core issue relates to WhatsApp’s data-sharing procedures with Facebook, with many users concerned an updated privacy policy going into effect on February 8th will mandate sharing of sensitive profile information with WhatsApp’s parent company.

(It’s also worth noting that data sharing with Facebook is extremely limited for European users due to stronger user privacy protections in the EU.).

“It’s important for us to be clear this update describes business communication and does not change WhatsApp’s data sharing practices with Facebook.

A bit of irony in all of this is the data sharing WhatsApp users are so keen to avoid has already likely been happening for a vast majority of those who use the messaging platform.

The company let users opt out of data sharing with Facebook for only a brief amount of time back in 2016, two years after Facebook purchased the platform

After that, new sign-ups and those who didn’t manually opt out of data sharing have had some WhatsApp information, principally their phone number and profile name, shared with the larger social network for ad targeting and other purposes

If you look at the privacy labels for WhatsApp on the App Store, labels Apple only last month began forcing developers to disclose, you’ll see scores of information that is marked as “data linked to you,” although only a unique device ID and app usage data is listed as used for “developer’s advertising and marketing.” (WhatsApp tried publicly calling Apple out for not making its own first-party apps adhere to the same standards, only for Apple to reply that it does in fact list privacy labels for the iOS apps it develops.)

In the upcoming privacy policy change, language regarding data sharing with Facebook was changed, leading many to believe the new mandated data sharing was a new change that could not be avoided — even though it’s been happening all along

“As part of the Facebook family of companies, WhatsApp receives information from, and shares information with, this family of companies,” reads WhatsApp’s new privacy policy

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