WHATSAPP'S WANTS YOUR DATA AND IT'S NOT ASKING FOR PERMISSION

Facebook-owned popular instant messaging service Whatsapp is getting a lot of flack from Indian users, tech enthusiasts and other important official figures, since its last software update which, as per cybersecurity experts, removed the platform's earlier emphasis on Privacy and Security.

- Yetnesh Dubey

WhatsApp's updated privacy policy reveals that the platform will share private user data with its parent company Facebook. According to cybersecurity experts, users are not given a chance to decline the new Terms and Conditions set forth by WhatsApp, a practice which is usually the norm.

With the new WhatsApp privacy policy in effect, Indian users have until 8 February 2021 to accept the new rules or their account on the platform will be deleted.

WhatsApp's new rules also became a national topic of discussion among tech enthusiasts, data privacy advocates and the general public alike. Since then, Facebook-led Whatsapp has been on full-damage control mode. The company bought out full front-page ads in major newspapers across the nation. It also tried to communicate directly with its user base via official status updates pledging that the new privacy policy update will not change how WhatsApp works.

However, judging by Facebook's recent downfall in the light of Cambridge Analytica and other massive data breach scandals, WhatsApp is unlikely to gain back public trust any time soon. Here's the entire story.

WHATSAPP TAKES FACEBOOK ROUTE GETS THE SAME HATE

Facebook bought WhatsApp for $19 billion in 2014, and the instant messaging app has been sharing data with its parent company since September 2016.

However, in its latest privacy policy update, WhatsApp seems to be expanding upon data collection from its users. For example, WhatsApp will collect information including your smartphone's hardware model, its current operating system, SIMs signal strength, connection information, phone number, mobile operator (ISP), IP address, time-zone etc.