WhatsApp has announced that it will not limit functionality for users who refuse its privacy policy, weeks after it stated that it would revoke certain core features for those who decline the new update.
The controversial privacy policy, which was published in January, highlighted how WhatsApp planned to share user data with its parent company Facebook and its subsidiaries. It was to be implemented in February.
The move took a dramatic turn and it saw many WhatsApp users switch to other apps such as Telegram and Signal, which they deemed more secure and less privacy intruding. The criticism that followed forced WhatsApp to delay the implementation of the new privacy policy until May the 15th in a bid to better explain the kind of data it would collect and how it would share the same information with Facebook.
Eventually, when the company rolled out the new policy on May 15th, it backpedaled on its earlier position by announcing a week before the deadline that it would not stop users from accessing WhatsApp, but would instead limit specific functions for users who refused to accept the privacy changes.
On Friday, WhatsApp stated that it had discussed the issue with privacy experts and various governments and decided not to lobotomize accounts that shunned the policy.
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“Given recent discussions with various authorities and privacy experts, we want to make clear that we will not limit the functionality of how WhatsApp works for those who have not yet accepted the update,” a WhatsApp spokesperson told the Verge.
“Considering the majority of users who have seen the update have accepted, we’ll continue to display a notification in WhatsApp providing more information about the update and reminding those who haven’t had a chance to do so to review and accept,” WhatsApp says on its website.
It also added that it currently has no plans for the reminders to become persistent and to limit the functionality of the app.
The policy update, according to the company, is about the messages sent to businesses. These messages will be shared with Facebook. Personal chats will continue to remain private, and no one who is not a part of them will be able to access them.
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