- Alice Brown
What Data do Your Messaging Apps Hold About you?
Amid the current controversy over WhatsApp's new privacy terms, many people have been concerned about what data their messaging apps hold on them. This information is often difficult to find once you've swiped straight through the terms and conditions and clicked accept when signing up, so in this post you will be able to gain a general idea of how much of your data messaging apps keep, and what for.
The main concern of users was that WhatsApp was going to start using WhatsApp data for its parent company, Facebook, while this was later clarified and WhatsApp delayed the update to give users time to better understand the update and to address the miscommunication of information that was seen across many social media platforms. Despite addressing the concerns of the users, millions of users flocked to privacy-focused messaging platforms, namely Signal and Telegram.
In this post you'll see an overview of what data Signal, Telegram, and WhatsApp hold for its users, which may be points for consideration if you are thinking of switching your primary messaging app.
Signal
Data not linked to you: The following data, which may be collected but is not linked to your identity, may be used for the following purposes:
APP FUNCTIONALITY
Contact Info;
Phone Number
Source: Signal
Telegram
Data linked to you - The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
APP FUNCTIONALITY
Contact Info;
Name
Phone Number
Contacts;
Contacts
Identifiers;
User ID
Source: Telegram
Data linked to you - The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
DEVELOPER'S ADVERTISING OR MARKETING
Identifiers;
Device ID
Usage Data;
Advertising Data
ANALYTICS
Purchases;
Purchase History
Location;
Coarse Location
Contact Info;
Phone Number
User Content;
Other User Content
Identifiers;
User ID
Device ID
Usage Data;
Product Interaction
Advertising Data
Diagnostics;
Crash Data
Performance Data
Other Diagnostic Data
Source: WhatsApp
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