Whatsapp has changed its privacy policy; in its new privacy policy it gives permission to share data, including your phone number, with Facebook. In an FAQ, WhatsApp says it is doing this to:
• More accurately count unique users.
• Better fights spam and abuse.
• Show better friend suggestions and more relevant ads to you on Facebook.
In a blog post, Whatsapp stated the reason behind this data sharing that highlights its plan to test the ways to communicate with businesses.
“Whether it’s hearing from your bank about a potential fraudulent transaction, or getting notified by an airline about a delayed flight, many of us get this information elsewhere, including in text messages and phone calls. We want to test these features in the next several months”.
What can be done to avoid this sharing of information between Whatsapp and Facebook?
There are two ways to opt out the sharing your account information with Facebook for targeting purposes.
Method 1:
On WhatsApp, don’t click Agree when it asks you to confirm you are happy with the change of terms. Instead, click read more. You should then see a check box or control button at the bottom of the screen which says “Share my WhatsApp account information with Facebook to improve my Facebook ads and product experiences”, Uncheck this.
Method 2:
If you have already agreed to the updated terms, you can go to to Settings > Account > Share my account info in the app. Then uncheck the box or toggle the control. But quick, WhatsApp says you only have 30 days to make this choice after agreeing to the new terms.
It seems that you can’t completely opt out this, as Whatsapp says that your information is sent to Facebook for other purposes such as improving infrastructure and delivery systems, understanding how its services are being used, securing systems, and fighting spam, abuse, or infringement activities.
So, it’s clear that somehow few of your information are accessible to the Facebook in a secure and reliable way. The only way to avoid this information sharing is to avoid the use of Whatsapp.
Industrial Cybersecurity
September 28, 2023
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