'No accounts will be deleted on Feb 8...': Amid furore over new privacy policy, WhatsApp delays plans

'No accounts will be deleted on Feb 8...': Amid furore over new privacy policy, WhatsApp delays plans

FPJ Web DeskUpdated: Saturday, January 16, 2021, 08:57 AM IST
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Days after issuing a clarification, WhatsApp appears to have put off the implementation of a new policy. According to an update on the company's blog, the date to accept the new terms and conditions was now being moved back. As such, the company's initial warning - that users who didn't comply with the new terms by February 8 would have their accounts deleted - has been retracted.

"No one will have their account suspended or deleted on February 8. We're also going to do a lot more to clear up the misinformation around how privacy and security works on WhatsApp. We’ll then go to people gradually to review the policy at their own pace before new business options are available on May 15," the blog post explains.

While the original post shared by the company had spoken about how users would have to accept the new terms if they didn't want their WhatsApp accounts to be deleted after February 8, the company appeared to indicate on Saturday that this was never in the plan.

"We will make sure users have plenty of time to review and understand the terms. Rest assured we never planned to delete any accounts based on this and will not do so in the future," read a tweet posted by their official handle.

Primarily pertaining to businesses, the updated terms are a part of Facebook's efforts to integrate the app. But the mandatory update caused quite the furore as users cried foul about undesirable data sharing. Since the beginning of January, Telegram and Signal have had their app userbase jump manifold, even as WhatsApp attempted damage control.

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