WhatsApp increases interaction with Facebook

WhatsApp has increased its coordination with Facebook and has recently rolled out several new features, like end-to-end encryption, WhatsApp Calling, and messaging tools like WhatsApp for web and desktop. With this, WhatsApp is updating its terms and privacy policy for the first time in four years as part of its plans to test ways for people to communicate with businesses in the months ahead.

In a blog post, WhatsApp stated that by coordinating more with Facebook, it will be able to do things like track basic metrics about how often people use its services and better fight spam on WhatsApp. And by connecting one’s phone number with Facebook’s systems, Facebook can offer better friend suggestions and show users more relevant ads if they have an account with them. For example, one might see an ad from a company they already work with, rather than one from someone they have never heard of.

People use WhatsApp every day to keep in touch with the friends and loved ones, and this isn’t changing. But as it was announced earlier this year, WhatsApp wants to explore ways for users to communicate with businesses that matter to them too, while still giving them an experience without third-party banner ads and spam. Whether it’s hearing from one’s bank about a potentially fraudulent transaction, or getting notified by an airline about a delayed flight, many of us get this information elsewhere, including in text messages and phone calls. WhatsApp wants to test these features in the next several months, but needs to update its terms and privacy policy to do so.

WhatsApp is also updating these documents to make clear that it has rolled out end-to-end encryption. When people are using the latest version of WhatsApp, the messages are encrypted by default, which means only the sender and the receiver can read them. Even as WhatsApp coordinates more with Facebook in the months ahead, the encrypted messages stay private and no one else can read them.