It was only a matter of time: WhatsApp to start compulsory information sharing with Facebook

[tim0901]

WhatsApp is changing its privacy policy with wording which will remove users' ability to prevent the service from sharing their personal data with Facebook.

 

Since 2016, users have had the one-time ability to prevent WhatsApp from sharing information with Facebook when they first signed up. This ability is being removed when this new privacy policy is enforced in February, with WhatsApp sharing data with Facebook becoming a condition for use of the app.

 

Current users of the app are therefore being shown an ultimatum: accept or stop using our service.

 

Some of the data collected by WhatsApp is:

Quote

• User phone numbers
• Other people’s phone numbers stored in address books
• Profile names
• Profile pictures and
• Status message including when a user was last online
• Diagnostic data collected from app logs

Under the new rules, WhatsApp may share data that they collect with the "Facebook Companies", which includes  Facebook Payments, Facebook Technologies (Oculus), CrowdTangle and Onavo.

 

Those who are in the "European Region" - including the EEA and UK - are also being required to accept a new privacy policy, however due to EU data protection laws their privacy policy is different. These services are provided by WhatsApp Ireland Limited, rather than WhatsApp LLC.

 

9to5Mac are reporting that Europeans are not affected by this change:

Quote

The new privacy policy also doesn’t apply in Europe due to stronger privacy legislation there.

however I cannot verify this myself. All I know is that I personally have been asked to accept a new policy as someone in the "European Region".

 

Users have until the 8th of February 2021 to accept the changes, at which time the new policies will come into force.

 

My thoughts

Fuck Facebook. I hope that the EU gets involved in this - one of the conditions of WhatsApp's sale back in 2014 was that they did not share any information with Facebook. This is a clear breach of that. Unfortunately, I doubt that they actually will in any meaningful way.

 

Fuck Facebook

 

Sources

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2021/01/whatsapp-users-must-share-their-data-with-facebook-or-stop-using-the-app/

https://9to5mac.com/2021/01/06/whatsapp-share-your-data-with-facebook/

WhatsApp worldwide legal updates: https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/updates/key-updates

WhatsApp Europe legal updates: https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/updates/key-updates-eea

[Moonzy]

 

so that's what's in the prompt i accepted earlier

[HanZie82]

Well they did pay around 2 000 000 000 dollars for it.
Im surprised it took them this long to gather the Whatsapp data as well.
Since data is money today...

[Jet_ski]

1 hour ago, gabrielcarvfer said:

Again and again: time to either split these giants or kill them, before they get unstoppable.

Sadly this onion article is more likely to happen. Facebook has probably one of the strongest lobbying initiatives than any company in the US.

Facebook Announces Plan To Break Up U.S. Government Before It Becomes Too Powerful

Quote

MENLO PARK, CA—In an effort to curtail the organization’s outsized influence, Facebook announced Monday that it would be implementing new steps to ensure the breakup of the U.S. government before it becomes too powerful. “It’s long past time for us to take concrete actions against this behemoth of governance that has gone essentially unchecked since its inception,” said Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, noting that while the governing body may have begun with good intentions, its history showed a culture of recklessness and a dangerous disregard for the consequences of its decisions. “Unfortunately, those at the top have been repeatedly contemptuous of the very idea of accountability or reform, and our only remaining course is to separate the government into smaller chunks to prevent it from forming an even stronger monopoly over the public.” Zuckerberg closed his remarks with repeated assurances that despite a likely legal battle ahead, no one government could stand up to the fortitude of Facebook.

https://www.theonion.com/facebook-announces-plan-to-break-up-u-s-government-bef-1844121902

[Mling]

I deleted Facebook when Zuckerberg was pulled in front of senators and he acted like a robot/alien. So creepy. Billions of dollars, all the user data in the world, and the best programmers still cant get Zuckerberg a personality. 

[xAcid9]

SE Asians:

 

[Prodigy_Smit]

2 hours ago, tim0901 said:

Other people’s phone numbers stored in address books

WTF is this. That is not ok. I cant even switch off whatsapp because it is so widely used in my country.

Then again they might have been doing it long ago and just chose to tell us now not far fetched considering facbooks history.

[Lynx]

I haven't used facebook for a long time, but still keep it, just in case.But well, it's time to permanently delete it I guess.

[WereCatf]

I don't use Facebook, I don't wanna go near that thing, but unfortunately, I can't drop Whatsapp; my mum and most of my relatives use it and there's just a whole, total chance of nil for me to be able to push them to anything else.

[Arika]

[Stahlmann]

Like many others already mentioned, i don't want to have anything to do with facebook and i don't even have an account. But there is absolutely no chance i can get everyone like my family and friends to switch to something else... I didn't yet receive any notification from whatsapp about this, so maybe this doesn't apply (yet) in germany. Seeing as this is also breaking one of the terms under which facebook bought up WhatsApp, and 99% of people not being able to switch due to not having a real alternative, this is an absolute no-go!

[trick2011]

8 hours ago, tim0901 said:

Those who are in the "European Region" - including the EEA and UK - are also being required to accept a new privacy policy, however due to EU data protection laws their privacy policy is different. These services are provided by WhatsApp Ireland Limited, rather than WhatsApp LLC.

hey this is the first place where this is mentioned, thanks.

 

I noticed that the arstechnica article showed a different notice than mine. Only the first two bullets are visible in the EU. When looking at the privacy statement from my phone and pc browser nothing like that list is shown to me so I guess that is confirmed.

 

 

[Doobeedoo]

Just saw the notice once I opened the app. Scummy, I'm in EU so yeah maybe and hopefully they collect limited amount as mentioned but yeah. It's just like, buy a very popular app, once you get even more people integrated, modify the terms that everyone just click "Agree" because of course they do and everything relays on it and is already set up.

To add it's also hard to convince people to just use another app. Like Viber though.

[Spotty]

What's Facebook going to learn about you from whatsapp that they don't already know from Facebook?

[pythonmegapixel]

How many of the people berating Whatsapp/Facebook on here are actually going to stop using their services?

 

That's the problem. People are so heavily invested in it the platform that they won't give it up. It's as close as it gets to an addiction, and Facebook know that they can leech off this, so they do.

[wanderingfool2]

19 minutes ago, Spotty said:

What's Facebook going to learn about you from whatsapp that they don't already know from Facebook?

I think the dangerous thing is people who have multiple accounts, and require one to be a bit more private.

 

If you  used WhatsApp, you are now connected and in other platforms like Instagram and Facebook you might start getting "suggested" friends.  I know someone that happened when Instagram did that.  They had 2 accounts and main one, and one that was kept separate.  Facebook had associated both accounts being held to the same owner, and started recommend the second (meant to be discrete account) to other friends/family.

 

I don't mind data mining for targeted ads, and doing background work on someone...but Facebook really takes things too far in terms of data mining, in my opinion...things like recommended friend suggestions can put people at real risk (when it's important to have an account no linked)

[PocketNerd]

Now if only people used that energy to storm government buildings to storm Tech Company HQs to demand more ethical practices.

[williamcll]

I mean Facebook already knew all of my personal data before I had a whatsapp account sooooooooo.

[soldier_ph]

Damn, Zucc must be Succing on dat Data 24/7

[Taf the Ghost]

4 hours ago, pythonmegapixel said:

How many of the people berating Whatsapp/Facebook on here are actually going to stop using their services?

 

That's the problem. People are so heavily invested in it the platform that they won't give it up. It's as close as it gets to an addiction, and Facebook know that they can leech off this, so they do.

That's the reason for the slow burn. In a lot of instances, you can't stop using the platform. There might be a slow migration to other ones, but that's why you establish something good then to twist it later. Granted, this was always coming when Facebook paid WAY too much for WhatsApp.

[HanZie82]

20 hours ago, Caroline said:

Of course you can.

like my mum used to say: if all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you?

Yeah ive heard that plenty too.
Sending her this picture shut her up tho.

 

Also telling her i'd gonna go bungie-jumping with my friends...

[Drama Lama]

I‘m really surprised they didn’t already do that

[TargetDron3]

On 1/6/2021 at 8:54 PM, HanZie82 said:

Well they did pay around 2 000 000 000 dollars for it.
Im surprised it took them this long to gather the Whatsapp data as well.
Since data is money today...

The sad thing is, I can't believe targeted ads are that effective.  Everyone says data about us is so valuable to advertisers, but I just can't see it.  I don't know anyone that just blind clicks on ads.  Not even my mom or in laws that know nothing about computers don't click on ads.  Where is that data really going?

 

And just so people understand, if you get something for nothing online, YOU are the product.  

[HanZie82]

11 minutes ago, TargetDron3 said:

The sad thing is, I can't believe targeted ads are that effective.  Everyone says data about us is so valuable to advertisers, but I just can't see it.  I don't know anyone that just blind clicks on ads.  Not even my mom or in laws that know nothing about computers don't click on ads.  Where is that data really going?

 

And just so people understand, if you get something for nothing online, YOU are the product.  

That last sentence; Golden!

But yeah i dont get it either, maybe its older ppl paying that shit not knowing what is what.

But yeah there is a great divide between internetters and the advertising companies. Those vile and ignorant scammy idiots do make the internets an awful place to be.
Luckily i have adblockers up the wazoo.

(Already got rid of TV because of all the vile advertising I want none of it!)

[tim0901]

43 minutes ago, TargetDron3 said:

The sad thing is, I can't believe targeted ads are that effective.  Everyone says data about us is so valuable to advertisers, but I just can't see it.  I don't know anyone that just blind clicks on ads.  Not even my mom or in laws that know nothing about computers don't click on ads.  Where is that data really going?

 

And just so people understand, if you get something for nothing online, YOU are the product.  

My understanding is that a lot of it is far more subtle than that. They're not necessarily trying to get you to click on that ad immediately, but to get their name in your head so that if and when you do want to buy something of that category, they're one of the people you might consider as a "hey I've heard of them before". It's not necessarily about producing sales at that moment, but about creating an image of their brand and what they're about, like an investment for the future.

 

LTT ad spots do this a lot - an ad spot for Micro Center is never going to get me to immediately run out the door and buy something there, but next time I'm interested in buying computer components, their name might pop up as a possible place to go (if I lived in the US that is). Same with Squarespace if I ever decided to build a website, or dbrand the next time I'm looking for a phone case.