WhatsApp will display a banner on the app providing users with more information on its privacy policy and terms of use update that has drawn massive criticism over concerns on data sharing with parent Facebook.
The contentious policy — whose rollout date was pushed to May 15 from February 8 — however, remains unchanged.
In a blogpost on Friday, WhatsApp said: “We’ve also included more information to try and address concerns we’re hearing. Eventually, we’ll start reminding people to review and accept these updates to keep using WhatsApp.”
The Facebook-owned company, in an e-mailed response, said the new in-app notification looks different from the one users saw in January and that has been redesigned based on feedback from users.
“...but the terms of service and privacy policy remain the same. As a reminder, this update does not change the privacy of people’s personal conversations and does not expand our ability to share data with Facebook,” WhatsApp said.
A raging debate erupted last month after WhatsApp said it will update its terms of service and privacy policy around how it processes user data and partners with Facebook to offer integrations across the social media giant's products.
The Indian government had asked WhatsApp to withdraw the changes, saying unilateral changes are unfair and unacceptable, and that not giving users an option to opt out raised “grave concerns regarding the implications for the choice and autonomy of Indian citizens”.
It had also questioned why Indian users are being subjected to differential treatment when compared to their European counterparts where the changes do not apply.
After the public outcry, WhatsApp had decided to delay the rollout of its new policy update to May 15.
“After May 15, people who haven’t accepted the privacy policy can still receive calls and get notifications, but they’ll need to agree to the update to send messages,” it said.
It added that in accordance with its policies, user accounts will remain active to allow them to accept the new terms of service and updates.
