WhatsApp rolls out in-app banner to nudge users to accept privacy policy update

WhatsApp will soon display an in-app banner that will seek to address users’ concerns on their controversial privacy policy update to begin nudging them to accept the update before the rollout begins on May 15.

In a blog post, the company said, “As a reminder, we’re building new ways to chat or shop with a business on WhatsApp that are entirely optional. Personal messages will always be end-to-end encrypted, so WhatsApp can’t read or listen to them.”

In January, the messaging platform introduced an update to its privacy policy that allowed it to share commercial user data with parent Facebook and group companies. This was part of the plan to enable commerce via the service. The rollout of the privacy update was delayed from February to May after user backlash and increase in downloads of competitor messaging platforms.

Speaking about rival messaging services, the company noted, "We’ve seen some of our competitors try to get away with claiming they can’t see people’s messages - if an app doesn’t offer end-to-end encryption by default that means they can read your messages. Other apps say they’re better because they know even less information than WhatsApp. We believe people are looking for apps to be both reliable and safe, even if that requires WhatsApp having some limited data."

“It’s important people know how we can provide WhatsApp for free. Every day millions of people start a WhatsApp chat with a business because it’s easier to do so than placing a phone call or exchanging emails. We charge businesses to provide customer service on WhatsApp - not people. Some shopping features involve Facebook so that businesses can manage their inventory across apps. We display more information directly in WhatsApp so people can choose if they want to engage with businesses, or not” added the company.