The European Network of Consumer Protection Authorities (CPC) has just launch a coordinated action against WhatsApp for “alleged unfair practices in WhatsApp’s updates to its terms of service and privacy policy.” This is something that local data authorities have already considered.
A year ago, this platform owned by Facebook (now Meta), announced that it was changing its conditions of use and privacy. The possibility that come to share all our information with Facebook (despite the fact that at the time of the acquisition he flatly denied that he would do so), it caused so much controversy that millions of followers changed platforms and WhatsApp also had to postpone these changes while saying try to explain them better.
🔥 BREAKING
1/ European Network of Consumer Protection Authorities (CPC) launches coordinated action against #WhatsApp.https://t.co/6GxmVumXX2#privacy #consumerprotection— Jeroen Terstegge (@PrivaSense) January 27, 2022
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Following an alert from the European Consumer Organization and eight of its member associations in July 2021 about alleged unfair practices when updating WhatsApp’s terms of service and privacy policy, the Network started a dialogue with WhatsApp. Now, under the leadership of the Swedish Consumer Agency, with the support of the European Commission, the CPC Network invites the company to clarify different aspects:
How WhatsApp ensures that consumers can understand the consequences of accepting the conditions service updated;
How WhatsApp uses consumers’ personal data for marketing purposes and if consumers understand that WhatsApp share this data with other Facebook/Meta companies or third parties;
How WhatsApp ensures that consumers can opt out of the new terms of serviceespecially as persistent in-app notifications urge consumers to accept the respective changes;
What measures WhatsApp intends to take in relation to those consumers who have already accepted the terms of service updated under the false assumption that this was necessary in order to continue using the application.
whatsapp has until March 2022 to respond to the request of information of the CPC Network. On this, the network, with the support of the European Commission, will assess whether WhatsApp has taken the appropriate measures so that their conduct fully complies with EU legislation on consumer protection.