WhatsApp has delayed a data-sharing change as users worried about privacy fled
the Facebook-owned messaging service and flocked to rivals Telegram and Signal.
"We're now moving back the date on which people will be asked to review and
accept the terms," WhatsApp said in a blog post.
WhatsApp cancelled its 8th February deadline for accepting the tweak to its
terms of service, involving sharing data with Facebook servers.
Users will no longer have to review and accept its updated terms by that date,
nor will they have their accounts suspended or deleted.
The platform said it would instead "go to people gradually to review the policy
at their own pace before new business options are available on 15th May".
The delay is a setback for WhatsApp's plan to generate revenue by facilitating
commercial exchanges on the messaging app, which Facebook acquired for $19
billion (â¬15.7 billion) in 2014 but has been slow to monetise.
Privacy advocates had jumped on the WhatsApp changes, pointing to what they
said was Facebook's poor track record of supporting consumer interests when
handling their data, with many suggesting users migrate to other platforms.
WhatsApp said the planned update does not affect personal conversations, which
will continue to have end-to-end encryption, or expand its ability to share
data with Facebook.
"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,"
the company said.
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