WhatsApp won't limit functionality for users who decline policy update

It is the second time WhatsApp has changed its position on forcing users to accept its new update

WhatsApp has announced that it will not limit functionality for users who decline its new privacy policy, after weeks of saying it would limit certain features for users who did not accept.

WhatsApp published its new privacy policy in January, revealing how it plans to share user data with parent company Facebook and its subsidiaries. The new policy was due to come into effect in February.

However, the move angered millions of WhatsApp users, with many switching to competing apps like Signal and Telegram.

After the wave of criticism, WhatsApp announced it was delaying the implementation of its privacy policy by three months, to 15th May, to better explain the type of data it collects and how it would share that information with Facebook.

The company finally rolled out its new policy on 15th May. In a reversal to an earlier position, however, it announced a week before the deadline that it would not stop users from accessing the messaging platform, but would restrict certain functionalities for users who did not accept the new policy.

WhatsApp now says that, after discussing the issue with various governments and privacy experts, it has decided that not to curtail functionality for users who have not yet agreed to its policy update.

The platform also said that it would regularly remind users to accept the new policy.

'Considering the majority of users who have seen the update have accepted, we'll continue to display a notification in WhatsApp providing more information about the update and reminding those who haven't had a chance to do so to review and accept,' WhatsApp says on its website.

'We currently have no plans for these reminders to become persistent and to limit the functionality of the app.'

WhatsApp says its policy update is about the messages sent to businesses, and those messages will be shared with Facebook. Personal chats will continue to remain private, and no one who is not a part of them will be able to access them.

WhatsApp's latest decision is part of its move to keep both its user base and governments happy.

The Indian government asked WhatsApp to withdraw its new privacy policy last week. It also issued a notice stating that WhatsApp's policy violated the country's laws.

In May, Germany's data protection regulator banned Facebook from processing WhatsApp users' data in the country.

The regulator said it viewed WhatsApp's new privacy policy as illegal and in violation of European data protection rules. It said it would use an emergency GDPR procedure to prevent Facebook from collecting and processing WhatsApp users' data for the next three months.

"The order is intended to safeguard the rights and freedoms of the many millions of users throughout Germany who give their consent to the terms of use," Hamburg's data protection commissioner Johannes Caspar said.

"My objective is to prevent disadvantages and damages associated with such a black-box procedure," he added.