"Are you leaving WhatsApp for Telegram / Signal?" - a response (with references)

In the past week many friends have asked me whether I would be leaving WhatsApp because of its alleged sharing of data with Facebook. Ironically most of them asked me this on either WhatsApp or Facebook. These are valid concerns and deserve a more detailed answer which follows below.

What is WhatsApp doing with our personal data?

It all started from 6 Jan 2021 when news sites started reporting that "WhatsApp informed users Wednesday that they would have to start sharing some personal data with its parent company, Facebook, starting February 8." Apparently, users "would have to agree to let Facebook and its subsidiaries collect WhatsApp data — including phone numbers and locations — before February 8 or lose access to the app." (Business Insider)

This was quickly refuted by WhatsApp: "WhatsApp clarifies it’s not giving all your data to Facebook after surge in Signal and Telegram users" (The Verge) as the company tried to contain fallout. You can read the Privacy Policy for yourself (here) or the clarification in their blog (here) or in summary:

1. The policy update does not affect messages with friends or family
2. It includes changes to messaging a business on WhatsApp, which is optional
3. It states that neither Facebook nor WhatsApp read users’ message logs or listen to their calls, and that WhatsApp doesn’t store user location data or share contact information with Facebook

But WhatsApp has already been sharing data with Facebook since its acquisition, unless you opted out in 2016 or within 30 days of starting your account (The Verge). This includes

1. Tracking basic metrics about how often you use the Apps
2. Connecting your phone number so Facebook can offer friend suggestions and show you more relevant ads (WhatsApp blog, 2016)

This does not mean I condone these arrangements, which all WhatsApp users have been consenting to (albeit unconsciously) through the Terms and Conditions of the End User Agreement. Facebook has a history of abusing personal data, the most famous being the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Even people who say "I have nothing to hide" should be concerned if their personal information like location or phone number or family members can be made use of by strangers.

Nor should we belittle those who have suddenly realised this and now want to opt out. The fact that this is how tech business has been conducted, does not mean that this is how tech business must always be conducted. This is the myth of Technological Determinism which is supported by technology companies because it justifies exploitative business practices.

What about Signal or Telegram?

For those who want to leave WhatsApp, but still need a way to communicate quickly by text (and optionally images, video, and attachments) with other people, especially in groups, two alternatives have become very popular since the announcement: Signal and Telegram, who have experienced enormous growth (Business Insider) They appear to have better privacy policies and features and store less personal data (ZDNet). For example, your Telegram account does not connect to your phone number.

• Signal is attractive because it is owned by a non-profit organisation that has publicly stated its commitment to privacy (compared to WhatsApp's owner, Facebook, which is implicated in abuses of privacy) (Business Insider)
• Telegram is attractive because it already has relatively wide adoption, so you are quite likely to find your friends and family there, or can easily persuade them to move. Telegram is founded and owned by a Russian named Pavel Durov, who has committed to not introduce ads in private one-to-one chats or group chats, and not to sell the company (TechCrunch)

But a move to either platform still requires you to trust the owners of Signal or Telegram - that they mean what they say now, and that they are not going to change their minds in the future. Very soon, Telegram is going to monetize large public one-to-many channels via its own Ad Platform (TechCrunch). We should note that the original owners of WhatsApp had also made public assurances - and then they were acquired by Facebook (The Verge).

I have no objections to using Signal or Telegram. But anyone moving has to be aware that promises have limitations, especially if the price is right. I have not even discussed the risk of employees using back door access to spy on users, as they did in SnapChat (CNet) and Uber (The Guardian). If either Signal or Telegram becomes ubiquitous, and the privacy situation changes. we will find it just as painful to leave.

What can save us?

This does not mean that we should give up all hope of protecting our personal data. This is part of the ongoing development that our societies need to endure as we seek to create a better relationship and curb excesses, as we have done in the past for industrialisation, railways, even tobacco. The question is: What can save us this time?

Free market forces alone and self-regulation by corporations will not save us. Big Tech corporations like Facebook and Google have benefited from the loosely (if at all) regulated environment and captured quasi-monopolistic power.

Competition Law alone has limits. Even if Big Tech companies like Facebook and Google are broken into smaller ones, they need to be profitable, and the existing business models provide very strong incentives to exploit our personal data. Any messaging app company will face the same temptations.

Contract Law alone has limits. Under the End User Agreement that we all click 'Agree' in order to use many popular apps, the corporations have too much power to set and change the terms, and users have no alternative - either take it or leave it (Fast Company). This is very painful when your personal network is on that platform. It is worse in countries where Facebook's free internet service is the only way to get online (The Guardian).

More work needs to be done to find a better solution. In the meantime, I am still contactable on WhatsApp, as well as Signal and Telegram and even WeChat - to stay in touch with my friends and family on whatever platforms they happen to use, while remaining aware of the risks.