This is not how WhatsApp has dealt with users in the European Union. Their only choice is to delete the app if they disagree. The debate over the WhatsApp privacy policy stresses the lack of choice given to Indian users to opt-out. It wants to give businesses on its platform the option to use Facebook’s hosting infrastructure to manage chats and deal with inquiries. WhatsApp wants to share data about how its users engage with businesses on its app. In the latest policy, the majority of changes relate to WhatsApp business users. The sole redeeming factor was that pre-existing users had the option of opting out of sharing their information with Facebook. However, in sharp contrast to this promise, in 2016 WhatsApp announced it would share information such as phone numbers, its users’ “last seen”, information on their pattern of interaction, mobile device details and service-related information with Facebook groups. There is an uproar against the new policy because when Facebook acquired WhatsApp in 2014 it had categorically said it would not share any information with Facebook. Petitions have been filed against the policy at the Delhi High Court and Supreme Court. Though many users consent to changes in policies and terms and conditions without applying their mind, these alterations (now on hold) created a stir. ON 5 January, WhatsApp notified its users in India and other countries of changes to its privacy policy and terms and conditions which would come into effect on 8 February. PARVATHI SAJIV and SHAGUN BHARGAVA explain how the privacy policy has changed, the current data protection regime, and lacunas in it. The 400 million users of the app in India have all kinds of questions ranging from the nature and implications of the changes in the policy to whether the law currently protects their sensitive data. WhatsApp’s new privacy policy has made headlines the entire month of January.
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