Recently, the communication software WhatsApp, requires users to agree to WhatsApp and the parent company Facebook to share user information, otherwise it will delete the number of processing. As the details of the relevant measures are vague, it has triggered a wave of social media communication “migration”. In Hong Kong, some users said they were worried about privacy issues and decided to “switch”. The company’s main goal is to provide the best possible service to its customers.
Recently Facebook’s subsidiary, communication software WhatsApp announced to update user privacy terms, said WhatsApp is a member of Facebook, requiring users to share data with Facebook.
As seen from the WhatsApp website, under the new agreement it can share with Facebook the user’s phone number, name, phone model, IP address and payment information using WhatsApp.
If users do not agree to the terms by February 8, their accounts will be deleted and they will not be able to continue using WhatsApp.
MeWe and Signal programs benefit more than 10 million users
The new measure has caused a lot of dissatisfaction among the users. The new measures have caused a lot of dissatisfaction among users and inspired a wave of “social media immigration”. The world’s richest man, tesla founder Elon Musk, has called on his fans to switch to Signal, while others have abandoned Facebook and switched to the social media platform MeWe.
On Wednesday (13), this reporter found that Signal and MeWe were on the top two download charts of Apple mobile apps in Hong Kong.
MeWe said it has added an average of 400,000 users a day since Saturday (9), and now has more than 14 million users. The MeWe system even crashed on Saturday due to the influx of new users. The company’s founder, Mark Weinstein, has personally welcomed Hong Kong people to use MeWe, stressing that MeWe has no political orientation or censorship, and that MeWe’s privacy policy is clear, stating that it will not sell ads or sell information to third parties.
According to Sensor Tower, a software that analyzes the marketing of mobile applications, Signal, a messaging App, recorded 7.5 million downloads in just four days from Jan. 6 to 10, a 4,200 percent jump week-on-week.
Another messaging app, Telegram, also claimed to have added 25 million users in the past 72 hours on Tuesday.
Whatsapp explains new policy does not affect privacy but users fail to trust
WhatsApp is currently collecting user information, including phone numbers, photos, IPs, location information and contact information, which is worryingly unprotected.
The Hong Kong Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, Ms. Lily Chung, said on Wednesday that she had written to Whatsapp’s head office. She called on the company to provide further explanations to dispel public doubts. She believes that the company has not clearly explained to users what information will be shared, the purpose of sharing information, etc.
The Turkish competition authority, the Competition Authority, and the supervisory body, the Personal Data Protection Agency, have also launched formal investigations into WhatsApp.
WhatsApp spokesman explained on Tuesday (12) that users’ information may only be stored in the server of Facebook hosting services when they communicate with merchants using Facebook hosting services (hosting services) through WhatsApp. Stressing that the new policy will not affect the user’s privacy, it said it will not keep or browse the user’s incoming and outgoing messages, call records and real-time location, and will not share the user’s phone contact list to any person or organization, nor will the group’s data be handed over to Facebook for advertising purposes.
The president of Facebook Greater China, Liang Youwei, also said that WhatsApp messages are protected by “end-to-end” encryption technology, only the two sides of the conversation can read the content.
However, users are still not relieved of their doubts. When interviewed by the station, Ah Hong said he abandoned WhatsApp and switched to Signal because he was worried about privacy.
He said, “Facebook doesn’t know where it will transfer the information to. Facebook itself already sells my information to advertisers, and sometimes after you read some information, you’ll see ads on Facebook. Then my phone number and contact person will be affected, right?
Information experts say that the degree of encryption of communication programs is similar, but is now a matter of confidence
Hong Kong wireless technology chamber of commerce vice chairman Li Jinhua attended a radio program on Wednesday to explain, according to WhatsApp privacy provisions, the future to promote shopping services, can place orders and addresses and other information stored to a third party, if the merchant has used Facebook, meaning that its branches Instagram and WhatsApp can also know consumers and merchants shopping information.
Information Technology Chamber of Commerce Honorary President Fang Baoqiao pointed out to this station, last October WhatsApp has issued a notice about the relevant policy, that WhatsApp business users of hosting services can be moved to Facebook, but the content of the explanation is not clear, resulting in panic, and now how to explain also does not help. From the technical point of view, Fang Baoqiao said WhatsApp has explained that its encryption level is basically the same as Signal, but the current phenomenon of user loss is a confidence problem.
Fang Baoqiao said: “The practice is not good, once the PR message is published, people’s feeling is that even if you how to explain, people do not seem to trust, so there is a “wave of migration”. There are several reasons for the “migration wave”, in addition to WhatsApp this (update), in addition to the recent Facebook and Twitter to (U.S. President) Trump‘s account blocked, after some people say whether the Internet has hegemony. These things happened at the same time, and many people switched to MeWe and Signal.
Fang Baoqiao suggested that even if users switch to other software, they should also clearly consider the background of the software company.
When interviewed by Taiwan‘s National Defense Security Research Institute, the director of the Institute of Network Operations and Information Security, Yishuo Zeng, said there is no absolute security in the cyber world.
Zeng Yishuo said: But it can be as far as possible within the capabilities, for example, end-to-end encryption (dialogue), which is relatively more reputable. Also if he can provide consumers with a similar contract, in accordance with the Personal Data Protection Act, (stating) what uses I will have, how to collect, and if there are changes, I also let you know first.
Signal, developed by the American company Open Whisper Systems, is widely regarded by users as having the highest standard of encryption for communication software. It allows for the destruction of conversations within a specified time frame and supports encrypted group video calls and facial blurring to protect your privacy and the privacy of others.
Founded in 2012 by the American company Sgrouples, the MeWe platform is ad-free compared to Facebook.
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