WhatsApp issues full-page ads to allay privacy concerns of users

Team Udayavani, Jan 13, 2021, 12:34 PM IST

New Delhi: WhatsApp on Wednesday issued full-page advertisements on newspapers in a bid to allay the fear of its users, many of whom are switching to rival apps like Telegram and Signal amid concerns over privacy.

Last week, WhatsApp rolled out in-app notifications to users about an update in its Terms of Service and privacy policy that will allow it to share more information with its parent company Facebook and roll out advertising and e-commerce. Users are required to accept the updated privacy policy by February 8, 2021, in order to continue using WhatsApp’s service.

Rival platforms like Signal and Telegram are reportedly seeing a surge in downloads in the wake of the development. On Saturday, WhatsApp took to social media to clarify that this update describes business communication and does not change WhatsApp’s data-sharing practices with Facebook. This has now been followed by full-page ads “WhatsApp respects and protects your privacy” across newspapers this morning.

While mentioning that “respect for your privacy is coded into our DNA”, the Facebook-owned messaging app in its advertisement has listed out what has changed and what hasn’t in is policy.

“WhatsApp cannot see your private messages or hear your calls and neither can Facebook: every private message, photo, video, voice message and document you send your friends, family and co-workers in one-on-one or group chats is protected by end-to-end encryption. It stays between you,” the ad says.

Images of the full-page ads are being circulated on social media with one user remarking that this is perhaps for the first time that Whatsapp had to give out a newspaper ad to clarify its privacy policy.

Here is how social media users reacted to the advert.

#WhatsappPrivacy They are really having a tough time if they have to do this #WhatsApp #WhatsAppPrivacyPolicy pic.twitter.com/Aly9W63w1F

— Sougat Chakraborty (@sougat18) January 13, 2021

How long we will be taken for granted by such blatant double standards ?
Self claimed ad claiming respect of our privacy v/s actual policy.

For India 🇮🇳 For Europe 🇪🇺 pic.twitter.com/bT45XwvsO1

— Vijay Shekhar Sharma (@vijayshekhar) January 13, 2021

But uncle I thought “Indians don’t care about #privacy”? pic.twitter.com/UBRWt9TkKY

— Malavika Raghavan (@teninthemorning) January 13, 2021