Update 28 Oct 2021: Zuckerberg vows metaverse will have privacy, parental controls
Mr Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive officer of Meta, formerly called Facebook, pledged that the metaverse, the futuristic immersive reality platform he envisions for the coming decade, will have privacy standards, parental controls and disclosures about data use that his social network has famously lacked.
Speaking during the live-streamed Connect event on Thursday (Oct 28), he gave examples of privacy and safety controls that would be needed in the metaverse, such as the ability to block someone from appearing in your space.
Mr Zuckerberg is betting that the metaverse will be the next big computing platform, calling it "the successor to the mobile Internet".
related: What is the metaverse?
That Facebook Won’t Read Your Messages
WhatsApp has introduced it’s new privacy policy. It basically says that the company will be sharing data with Facebook and that users will have till 8 February 2021 to agree on the new terms. If they don’t agree with this new policy, they’ll no longer be able to use Whatsapp.
This has obviously got many people understandably worried, thinking that the app would be able to access your private messages and send them to Facebook.
However, the company has stepped in to clear things up. On 12 Jan, WhatsApp released a tweet regarding some of these concerns:
- WhatsApp cannot see your private messages or hear your calls and neither can Facebook.
- The app keeps logs of who everyone is messaging or calling.
- It cannot see your shared location and neither can Facebook.
- WhatsApp does not share your contacts with Facebook.
- Group chats remain private.
- You can set your messages to disappear.
- You can download your data.
Giving More Time For Our Recent Update
We’ve heard from so many people how much confusion there is around our recent update. There's been a lot of misinformation causing concern and we want to help everyone understand our principles and the facts.
WhatsApp was built on a simple idea: what you share with your friends and family stays between you. This means we will always protect your personal conversations with end-to-end encryption, so that neither WhatsApp nor Facebook can see these private messages. It’s why we don’t keep logs of who everyone’s messaging or calling. We also can’t see your shared location and we don’t share your contacts with Facebook. With these updates, none of that is changing. Instead, the update includes new options people will have to message a business on WhatsApp, and provides further transparency about how we collect and use data. While not everyone shops with a business on WhatsApp today, we think that more people will choose to do so in the future and it’s important people are aware of these services. This update does not expand our ability to share data with Facebook.
We’re now moving back the date on which people will be asked to review and accept the terms. No one will have their account suspended or deleted on February 8. We're also going to do a lot more to clear up the misinformation around how privacy and security works on WhatsApp. We’ll then go to people gradually to review the policy at their own pace before new business options are available on May 15. WhatsApp helped bring end-to-end encryption to people across the world and we are committed to defending this security technology now and in the future. Thank you to everyone who has reached out to us and to so many who have helped spread facts and stop rumors. We will continue to put everything we have into making WhatsApp the best way to communicate privately.
The user who created this post has since deleted it and apologised for causing unnecessary panic. — Screengrab from Facebook
For the first time ever this week, some users have been able to view a Status posting by WhatsApp which informed them that new features and updates will be shared through the feature. Users will see that the WhatsApp status posting comes with a verified checkmark by its display name. In the first posting, the company decided to share some awareness about its privacy policy by informing users that it doesn’t read or listen to personal conversations as they are end-to-end encrypted.
However, it appears that the Status posting will disappear once a user has gone through it. Usually postings by other users that have been seen will remain in Viewed updates for 24 hours, or until the user removes the posting.
News of WhatsApp’s latest Status has been escalated into fake news by some users who claimed that clicking on the Status will enable scammers to access your online bank account and transfer funds. Screenshots of such messages have also been shared widely as a forwarded message on WhatsApp, and appears to have originated from a user on Facebook.
WhatsApp sends ‘Status’ updates assuring users it can’t read or listen to their conversations
WhatsApp announced that it will postpone the data-sharing change to 15 May
Following the controversial new privacy policy terms update on its platform, Facebook-owned messaging app WhatsApp recently reached out to its users to reassure them of its “commitment” to user privacy.
In a series of ‘Status’ updates sent to all users on the app, WhatsApp assured that it is unable to “read or listen” to users’ personal conversations, adding that all the conversations are “end-to-end encrypted”.
“WhatsApp can’t read or listen to your personal conversations as they’re end-to-end encrypted,” said the message app in one of its Status updates.
WhatsApp's clarifications on privacy soothe some Singapore users' concerns
WhatsApp’s clarifications about updates to its terms of service have gone some way to allay initial concerns over privacy, said users of the messaging app in Singapore who intend to continue using it.
This comes after the policy changes announced last week – centred around sharing data with WhatsApp’s parent company Facebook – sparked a global outcry among users, who said they would flock to other messaging apps.
Users that CNA spoke to said that the subsequent Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) issued by the messaging giant on Tuesday (Jan 12) cleared up some misconceptions over the policy updates and how it would affect their data privacy.
WHATSAPP FORCES USERS TO AGREE TO SHARE PRIVATE DATA INCLUDING PHONE NUMBER WITH FACEBOOK
WhatsApp will force users to agree to its new privacy policy within the next month, or else lose access to the app. Agreeing to the terms will mean that a user’s private data, including their phone number, will be shared with Facebook, which owns WhatsApp.
All users must agree to the new terms by 8 February 2021, or else lose access to their chats and contacts. The update comes in the form of an in-app notification, which users can choose to ignore until the date arrives. “By tapping Agree, you accept the new terms, which take effect on February 8, 2021,” the notification states.
“After this date, you’ll need to accept the new terms to continue using WhatsApp. You can also visit the Help Center if you would prefer to delete your account."
Millions of WhatsApp users ABANDON the app that will force them to share their personal data with Facebook
Millions of WhatsApp users have taken the drastic step of abandoning the app ahead of a privacy policy update that will force them to share their data with Facebook. The update, which will be released on February 8, affects WhatsApp users in all countries outside of Europe and the UK, where there are strict data protection laws.
Users in these regions will be required to give their consent for Facebook to access their data, including their phone numbers and information about how they interact with others, in order to continue using the app. The requirement will apply regardless of whether or not the WhatsApp user has a Facebook account.
WHAT DOES THE CHANGE MEAN FOR YOU:
- From February 8, WhatsApp will start sharing user data with its parent company, Facebook.
- While WhatsApp will start sharing data with Facebook, it's important to note that WhatsApp is encrypted by default, meaning Facebook will not be able to see the contents of your messages.
- However, it will be able to see the numbers in your contact list, as well as how often you interact with them.
- If you use WhatsApp you should have received a notification, explaining the changes.
- The notification outlines the new data sharing feature, and urges you to 'Agree' with the conditions.
WhatsApp users flock to rival message platforms
Message platforms Signal and Telegram have both seen a huge surge in downloads around the world following a controversial update to WhatsApp's terms and conditions
WhatsApp has told its two billion users they must allow it to share data with its parent company Facebook if they wish to continue using it. This does not apply to users in the UK and Europe. However, the notification has been sent to everyone.
All WhatsApp users will be unable to continue with the service unless they accept the new terms by 8 February. The platform said the update will enable it to offer features such as shopping and payments. It also said its practice of sharing data with Facebook was not new.
WhatsApp has said the data it shares with its parent company does not include messages, groups or call logs. However, it does include:
- phone number and other information provided on registration (such as name)
- information about the user's phone, including make, model, and mobile company
- internet protocol (IP) addresses, which indicate the location of a user's internet connections
- any payments and financial transactions made over WhatsApp
Amid worldwide concerns over WhatsApp’s new privacy terms, there’s one question facing users: to switch, or not to switch?
Millions of people around the world, many Hongkongers among them, are considering dropping the encrypted messaging platform WhatsApp and switching instead to alternatives they believe offer better data and privacy protection following the announcement of changes to the way the app shares information with its parent company, Facebook.
WhatsApp last week asked its more than 2 billion global users to agree to new terms regarding the way it shares their personal information with Facebook by February 8, or they will no longer be able to use its services.
The move triggered an outcry from everyday WhatsApp users and Hong Kong’s privacy watchdog alike, with many jumping ship to rivals such as Signal and Telegram.
WhatsApp's rivals, Signal and Telegram, have seen a record-breaking amount of downloads in recent days after WhatsApp dismayed many users by rewriting its terms of use. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi)
Asians dump WhatsApp for Signal and Telegram on privacy concerns
A theme has been trending on social media over the past week in Hong Kong, which has come increasingly under the watchful eye of Beijing after a national security law imposed on the territory last year. "We made it from ICQ to MSN, from MSN to WhatsApp. It's not that hard to switch to another app!" The line refers to popular instant messaging tools that have come and gone over past 20 years.
It is an indication that people in the city have joined social media users around the globe in a shift to other messaging platforms because of concerns over privacy, after WhatsApp dismayed many users by rewriting its terms of use on Jan. 6.
The new terms will essentially allow Facebook, WhatsApp's owner, to gain access to certain personal information, such as contact lists, location, financial information and usage data.
WhatsApp reassures users on privacy as many jump ship
Location data and message contents are encrypted end to end, according to WhatsApp. PHOTO: AFP
Messaging giant WhatsApp reassured its users on Tuesday that it was still respecting their privacy, in the wake of terms and policy changes announced last week that drove many people globally, including in Singapore, to turn to rival chat apps.
The changes allow some WhatsApp data to be shared with parent company Facebook.
On Tuesday, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri tweeted that "there is a lot of misinformation about the WhatsApp (terms of service)" and that the policy update "does not affect the privacy of your messages with friends or family in any way".
related:
The truth about your WhatsApp data
WhatsApp’s policies changed to reflect the possibility of commercial transactions involving the mingling of activity among Facebook apps
There was a backlash to WhatsApp in recent days after it posted what appear to be overhauled privacy policies. Let me try to clarify what happened. Some people think the messaging app will now force those using it to hand over their personal data to Facebook, which owns WhatsApp.
That’s not quite right. WhatsApp’s policies changed cosmetically and not in ways that give Facebook more data. The bottom line is that Facebook already collects a lot of information from what people do on WhatsApp. The confusion was the result of Facebook’s bungled communications, mistrust of the company and America’s broken data-protection laws.
Here is what changed with WhatsApp and what didn’t:
- Facebook bought WhatsApp in 2014, and since 2016, almost everyone using the messaging app has been (usually unknowingly) sharing information about their activity with Facebook.
- Facebook knows the phone numbers being used, how often the app is opened, the resolution of the device screen, the location estimated from the internet connection and more.
- Facebook uses this information to make sure WhatsApp works properly and to help a shoe company show you an ad on Facebook.
- Facebook can’t peer at the content of texts or phone calls because WhatsApp communications are scrambled.
- Facebook also says that it doesn’t keep records on who people are contacting in WhatsApp, and WhatsApp contacts aren’t shared with Facebook.
10 Facts About the WhatsApp New Privacy Policy That’s Causing People to Abandon the App
In case you didn’t know, WhatsApp is going to experience a massive change in less than a month’s time.
By 8 Feb 2021, WhatsApp users will have to share their data with Facebook in order to continue using the messenger app. And, as expected, chaos ensued.
Here are 10 facts about WhatsApp new policy change that’s causing a big hoo-ha worldwide:
- What Is It?
- What Data is Shared?
- Worldwide Except For Europe and The UK
- How Will The Information Be Used?
- Facebook Won’t Read Your Messages
- How Businesses Use Data From WhatsApp
- Has Been Sharing Information Since 2016
- Signal, The Alternative Messenger App That’s Popular Right Now
- Effects Of The Announcement
- TL; DR: Should You Uninstall WhatsApp
