WhatsApp privacy policy update 2021 | Insights

WhatsApp privacy policy update 2021 | Insights

Since the launch of Facebook in 2004, the company’s strategy is evident to buy the potential rivals before they hit it such as Messenger, Instagram, Oculus, etc. Similarly, Facebook owned WhatsApp in 2014 for $19 billion and by 2015, it was known to be the largest messaging app having 2 billion worldwide users by 2020.

After, joining the Facebook umbrella, WhatsApp offered its user with an option to choose if they want to share their data with Facebook. However, with the recent WhatsApp privacy policy update 2021, everyone is desperate to find an answer to “Is WhatsApp safe and private?”

Facebook was launched as a social media platform but soon it made its way to social media marketing. Now, Facebook has become a favorite platform for any digital marketing agency for its features like, business pages, sponsored & Classic Ads and stories, and much more.

Just as WhatsApp co-founder, Brian Acton had stated, Facebook is widening its horizon being very good “businesspeople”. This is evident from the WhatsApp privacy policy update 2021. With this statement, let’s dig deeper into the privacy update.

You must be well-aware of the privacy policy that pops-up when you install the app. It requires your permission to access your data for the proper functioning, improvement, customization, support and marketing of the App services. As the WhatsApp privacy policy states, this collection of data depends upon your usage.

Before WhatsApp privacy policy update 2021, all that WhatsApp required from you was your account information such as your phone number, profile name. It does not retain the messages on its servers rather on the user’s device. However, it stores the messages on servers only when it is not delivered in encrypted form for 30 days and deletes it afterwards.

As far as, WhatsApp is owned by Facebook, the recent privacy surge is nothing new. Facebook has a long list of privacy lapses. The most agreed upon opinion about this privacy update is because Facebook tends to integrate all the Apps it owns and make it a perfect digital marketing hub. It seems to be the first approach of a social media marketing company. The five icons on the bottom of Facebook page is the evidence.

The internet has gone head over heels as WhatsApp sent an in-app notification to its users. Either you accept WhatsApp privacy policy update 2021 and continue using the app or you will lose access to your account. No choice in between. Period.

This update is most likely to facilitate a digital marketing agency with the better insights to the customer’s data. You must have seen the option of adding WhatsApp button to Facebook pages. This is it! The automatically collected information by WhatsApp includes time, frequency, duration, log files.

However, the big deal is that it collects information about your hardware model, OS information, mobile network, connection information including your phone number, mobile operator and ISP, IP address, device operations, and identifiers even the ones unique for Facebook Company Products. The WhatsApp Privacy Policy clearly mentions that it uses your IP address and other location-related information.

As a consequence of WhatsApp privacy policy update 2021, WhatsApp is facing a huge backlash from users and a large number of users are shifting to other related apps as well. However, to address the issue, WhatsApp has issued a clarification that it does not collect data from one-to-one messages but your conversation with a business account to help the business market with audience reach.