WhatsApp uses status messages – its version of Stories – to try to reassure users about privacy

The Facebook-owned WhatsApp messaging app has started posting status messages to users regarding its “commitment to your privacy.” In-app messages appeared for members of The edge Saturday in the US and UK, and some users have reported that status messages – WhatsApp’s version of Snapchat Stories or Twitter Fleets – have been appearing in India for some time now.

“There has been a lot of misinformation and confusion around our recent update and we want to help everyone understand the facts behind how WhatsApp protects people’s privacy and security,” a spokesperson said. from WhatsApp in an email to The edge. “Going forward, we’re going to provide updates to people on the Status tab so that people directly hear about WhatsApp. Our first update reaffirms that WhatsApp cannot see your personal messages, nor can Facebook, as they are protected by end-to-end encryption. “

The messages read “One thing that is not new is our commitment to your privacy” and a reminder that “WhatsApp cannot read or listen to your personal conversations as they are end-to-end encrypted.”

The messages are part of a larger effort by WhatsApp to dispel misconceptions about an upcoming update to its privacy policy. The update aims to explain how businesses that use WhatsApp for customer service can store their chat logs on Facebook’s servers. WhatsApp previewed the changes to business chats in November. Given Facebook’s history of privacy errors, however, users have misinterpreted the changes to the privacy policy to mean that WhatsApp would require sharing sensitive profile information with Facebook.

The company has posted an FAQ page on the changes and pushed back the effective date of the update from February to May. He released a statement earlier this month dealing with the confusion to reiterate what the new privacy policy would cover:

The update does not change WhatsApp’s data sharing practices with Facebook and has no impact on how people communicate privately with friends or family anywhere in the world. WhatsApp remains deeply committed to protecting people’s privacy. We are communicating directly with users via WhatsApp about these changes so that they have time to review the new policy over the next month.

Amid the confusion that followed, rival messaging apps Signal and Telegram recently saw an increase in new users. Telegram said last week that it added the ability for users to import their chat history from WhatsApp. And Signal has added new mainstream chat features like animated stickers and wallpapers to its app.