Facebook recently updated WhatsApp’s privacy policy, which will take effect on February 8, but was postponed due to users’ strong opposition to the new terms, Turkey has even begun an antitrust investigation.
Now the government of India is also getting involved. India’s Ministry of Technology has asked Facebook to withdraw the new privacy policy of the WhatsApp messaging platform.
The ministry says the new conditions take away Indian users’ choice. In the letter, he wrote that “the proposed changes raise serious concerns about the implications for the election and autonomy of Indian citizens.”
The report also pointed out that users did not opt out of the terms of sharing these new data with Facebook. Compared with users of the application in the European market, Indian users have fewer choices.
The Ministry of Science and Technology also asked WhatsApp to answer 14 questions, including detailed information about the types of user data it collects, and whether it describes customers based on usage and cross-border data flows.
In a statement, WhatsApp said that the company is working to address misinformation and remains available to answer any questions. It added: “We wish to reinforce that this update does not expand our ability to share data with Facebook.”
For those who don’t know, WhatsApp recently updated its privacy policy to allow users to accept the new terms or lose access to the platform before February 8.
However, after facing this move and criticism from millions of users turning to its competitors, the company recently announced that it would postpone the introduction of the new terms to May.
