- The controversial updates to the WhatsApp privacy policy will not roll out as scheduled, the company said today.
- Instead, the company will pause the rollout for at least three months.
- This change of plans is most likely the result of intense user backlash to the changes.
Today, in an official blog post, WhatsApp announced that it will press “pause” on the controversial updates to its privacy policies. The company said it wants more time to “clear up the misinformation around how privacy and security works on WhatsApp.”
The delay will last at least three months. There are no plans to make changes to the policy during that time, however.
WhatsApp is in a big mess
The move is a direct response to the not-so-subtle user backlash related to the changes in the policy. Essentially, the new WhatsApp privacy terms allow the company to take specific user data from WhatsApp and transfer it to other Facebook-owned properties, including the social network of the same name.
Related: Here’s how WhatsApp will share your data with other Facebook brands
When the privacy policy changes went public last week, the response from the public was downright brutal. It initiated a huge exodus of users from WhatsApp to other encrypted messaging platforms including Telegram and Signal. In the case of the latter, its servers crashed earlier today partially due to the huge growth in users.
In the blog post, the company says that none of its privacy-focused features are changing. It explains that this new policy is centered on helping users connect with businesses, which it concedes is something not many users do at the moment. However, it sees that as the future of its platform and is ready to make that jump — even if its users aren’t.
In a poll conducted here at Android Authority, only about 10% of our readers said they were OK with the changes in the WhatsApp privacy policy. If you want to delete your WhatsApp account, we have step-by-step instructions here.
