On May 15, Whatsapp will apply its new general conditions of use. Postponed last January, after a wave of criticism against it, this update is about to invest all applications. Aware that many users have not yet resigned themselves to accepting them, WhatsApp will not immediately follow through on its threats.
Concretely, no account will be suspended as of May 15th. Recalcitrant users will receive notifications inviting them to accept the new T & Cs of the Facebook subsidiary as soon as possible. Then, they will gradually lose access to certain functionalities. WhatsApp explains on its blog.
“WhatsApp functionality will be limited until you accept the update. It will not affect all users at the same time. “
First, it will no longer be possible to access to the list of written conversations. A few weeks later, if you still have not accepted the T & Cs, you will also lose the possibility of make and receive calls. Finally, after several weeks of inactivity, and according to WhatsApp’s policy on inactive account, the latter can be purely and simply deleted. After 120 days of inactivity, the accounts will be automatically deleted.
A controversial update
Since last January, Facebook has been reminding us by means of press releases and publications on social networks, of the changes that will be effective from May 15. Criticized, this update plans to facilitate exchanges between users and companies. By using Facebook tools, and in particular their servers, the latter give Mark Zuckerberg’s firm access to conversations between clients and professionals.
They will then be used for targeted advertising on the group’s various applications such as Instagram, WhatsApp or Facebook. “Whenever a company uses this service, we make it clear in the discussion. So it’s up to you to decide whether or not you want to send him a message. ” For personal conversations, however, nothing changes. They will remain encrypted from end to end and no one, except the two interlocutors, will be able to read them. Facebook and WhatsApp don’t have access to it either.