The changes that WhatsApp has announced regarding its privacy policy will begin on May 15. As the company stated, it will gradually ask users to accept the new changes. And those who do not comply with them will lose the full functionality of their WhatsApp account after May 15.
In its FAQ page , WhatsApp states: “To give you enough time to review the changes at your own pace and convenience, we have extended the effective date to May 15. If you have not accepted by then, WhatsApp will not delete account . However, you will not have full WhatsApp functionality until you accept. For a short period of time, you will be able to receive calls and notifications, but you will not be able to read or send messages from the app.”
The new terms state that after 120 days of inactivity, accounts are usually deleted. For users who decide to delete their WhatsApp account, there is a fee. WhatsApp’s Help Center says: “If you want to delete your account on Android, iPhone or KaiOS, we hope you will reconsider. It is something we cannot reverse as it deletes your message history, removes you from all WhatsApp groups and deletes your WhatsApp backups.”
WhatsApp has been forced to update its privacy policy following its decision to allow users to message businesses directly on platform . The problem is that there is a serious misunderstanding with some subscribers who believe that by agreeing to the new Privacy Policy update, their personal data will be shared with Facebook. But this is not the case and private messages will remain encrypted. This does not apply to messages sent to businesses via WhatsApp. Data used in business messages can be used for ad targeting, with some data retained on Facebook’s servers.
The mistaken belief that Facebook would have access to encrypted messages between WhatsApp users led some subscribers to decide to abandon WhatsApp for rival messaging apps like Signal and Telegram.
The new privacy policy will allow WhatsApp and Facebook to share payment and transaction data for better ad targeting. WhatsApp currently has over 2 billion users in more than 180 countries.
