WhatsApp has put its new privacy policy on hold, meaning that users do not have to sign up for it right away, the company told the Delhi High Court on Friday. It also stated, that no functionalities of the instant messaging platform will be limited for users yet to accept the policy, neither will the company delete their account. This would be the company’s approach until a new personal data protection bill turns into a law, according to a company spokesperson told The Indian Express.
This is a major shift from the position WhatsApp assumed when it rolled out its new privacy policy. Back then, the company stated that its users would have to accept the new privacy policy or risk having their services restricted and eventually their account being deleted from the platform.
Now that the company has backed off of its stance, users who are yet to consent to the terms and conditions of the new privacy policy can continue to ignore it without the fear of having their accounts deleted. However, they will continue to receive reminders for the same at regular intervals.
This also means that if users who have not accepted the new privacy policy, if they interact with business accounts the data will not be shared with Facebook, as of now. However, data from users who have consented to the new privacy policy may still be shared with Facebook.
To recall, since the rollout of the new privacy policy, WhatsApp has repeatedly said that signing up for it does not mean that private conversations and data will be shared with Facebook. Instead, only conversations between Business accounts and their customers will be shared with the parent company for the purpose of advertisements.
