Withdraw new privacy policy, WhatsApp told

Withdraw new privacy policy, WhatsApp told

Fast News

AgenciesUpdated: Thursday, May 20, 2021, 01:18 AM IST
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Whatsapp defends its new privacy policy again after IT Ministry directs WhatsApp to withdraw | Photo by Anton from Pexels

New Delhi: The government has ordered WhatsApp to withdraw its controversial new privacy policy, saying the changes under­mine the sacrosanct values of privacy, data security and harms rights and interests of Indian citizens. The Ministry of Electro­nics and IT shot off a letter to WhatsApp on May 18, sources said, and warned necessary steps in accordance with law will be taken if a satisfactory response was not received within seven days. The ministry has taken a strong position on the matter, and made it clear that it is not just problematic but also "irresponsi­ble" for the messaging platform to leverage its position to impose "unfair" terms and conditions on Indian users, when many depend on WhatsApp to communicate in everyday life, according to the sources. When contacted, a WhatsApp spokesperson said the company continues to engage with the government. "... we reaffirm what we said before that this update does not impact the privacy of personal messages for anyone... we'll take every oppo­r­tu­nity to explain how we protect people's personal messages and private information," the spokesperson added.

12 kill dolphin in UP, 1 arrested

Sitapur (UP): Twelve persons were booked for killing a rare fresh water dolphin from the Sharda auxiliary canal. The FIR was lodged after a video of the incident started doing the rounds on social media. Sitapur SP Rakesh Prakash Singh said Prithivi Sahu was arrested and 2 teams were formed to nab others. A group of villagers in Hargaon area, on Sunday, caught the dolphin from the auxiliary canal, which passes through the district and is used for fishing by the locals, in the fishing net and killed it. The SP said "The villagers apparently divided the meat among themselves. However, one of the locals recorded the act which was later circulated widely on social media platforms and caught the attention of forest officials."

Super Blood Moon in Eastern sky on May 26

Kolkata: A rare Super Blood Moon will be seen in the eastern sky on May 26 evening, just after a total lunar eclipse. Kolkata had seen its last total lunar eclipse, 10 years ago, on Dec 10, 2011, Director of MP Birla Planetarium and renowned astrophysicist De­bi­prasad Duari said on Wednes­day. "On the night of May 26, the sun, earth and moon alignment will be such that from earth it will be viewed as a full moon and also eclipsed for some time. Moon on its journey around the earth will be passing through earth's shadow for a few moments and will be totally eclipsed," Duari said.

Giri seeks probe in Akhara secy death

Prayagraj: The recently expelled Yoga guru, Anand Giri, demanded a probe into the death of former Niranjani Akhara secretary Ashish Giri whose bloodstained body with a gunshot was found in Daraganj ashram in November 2019. In a letter to PM Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and chief ministers of UP and Uttarakhand, Anand Giri claimed Ashish Giri was murdered under a conspiracy, but the file was closed terming the case as a suicide. He alleged financial irregularities in the ashram and demanded a probe.

Zoo attendant mauled to death

Itanagar: A 35-year-old zoo attendant was mauled to death by a Royal Bengal tigress at the Biological Park here, an official said. Poulash Karmakar, a native of Dhekiajuli in Assam’s Lakhim­pur district was killed by the tig­ress when he was entering her cage to clean the water pond on Tuesday, zoo curator Raya Flago said. "The incident occurred at 2.30 pm on Tuesday. I was infor­med of the incident by one of our animal attendants. When I rea­c­h­ed the zoo along with a doctor and other staff, Karmakar was already dead. He was found ble­eding from the face," Flago said.

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