WhatsApp details what will happen to users who don’t agree to privacy changes

[Alex5723]

WhatsApp details what will happen to users who don’t agree to privacy changes

..If they still don’t accept the terms, “for a short time, these users will be able to receive calls and notifications, but will not be able to read or send messages from the app,” the company added in the note…

The “short time” will span a few weeks. In the note, WhatsApp linked to a newly created FAQ page that says its policy related to inactive users will apply after May 15.

WhatsApp’s policy for inactive users states that accounts are “generally deleted after 120 days of inactivity.”..

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[Fred]

all the more reasons to avoid such data snoopers

~

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[anonymous]

As easy as people on this site makes it sound, however, it’s often not that simple. My workplace, for instance, uses WhatsApp extensively, so I can’t just leave. Most of my contacts use WhatsApp, and it’s going to be hard to convince *everyone* to switch. Even if I personally switched to Signal, and even if most of my friends and family switched, there would still be people in my life that would continue using WhatsApp, so I’d still have to keep both apps installed simultaneously.

The technical act of migration is not difficult. The social act is.

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[Alex5723]

It is easier to disconnect from WhatsApp using Beeper

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[MrJimPhelps]

If my job required me to use something like WhatsApp, I would do it on my company phone, but not on my personal phone. My job has provided me an iPhone, and I do all job-related tasks on that phone. But my personal phone is a good old flip phone, and I won’t be doing any company-related tasks on it, except for the occasional phone call or text message.

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 8.1 running in a VM

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[Alex5723]

WhatsApp backtracks on its threat — won’t deactivate accounts for not accepting new policy

WhatsApp said today that it won’t delete or deactivate your account if you don’t accept its privacy policy that’s rolling out on May 15.

The Facebook-owned chat app had originally introduced the updated privacy policy in January through a pop-up to users. However, after a major user backlash, it decided the rollout to February 8 and eventually to May 15.

The company had said at that time that if a user won’t accept the new privacy policy by then, their accounts would be deactivated temporarily. In order to activate the account, they had to accept the policy…

“While the majority of users who have received the new terms of service have accepted them, we appreciate some people haven’t had the chance to do so yet.

No accounts will be deleted on May 15 because of this update and no onewill lose the functionality of WhatsApp either. We will follow up with reminders to people over the next several weeks.”..

WhatsApp specified that while it won’t delete your account, you will start losing core features of the app —such as not being able to access your chat list, and eventually stop getting message notifications — if you don’t accept the policy. The company didn’t mention after how many weeks it’ll start restricting your features at this moment…

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[Average-Jane]

Related, ZDNet shared this tongue-in-cheek opinion piece a couple days ago:

https://www.zdnet.com/article/facebook-threatens-to-make-ios-users-pay-please-do-it-mr-zuckerberg/

Author ultimately concludes it’s a bluff.

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[Author]

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