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WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

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11–20 of 244 posts

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#11
post #5

I was really hoping these privacy concerns would dissuade people from using WhatsApp. But I have a hidden agenda: I hate their web app. I just want a chat software I can use from anywhere.

Heh, let's be honest, Signal's isn't better (and I mean the desktop app, cause they don't have a web app). It randomly corrupts the sqlite database forcing me to set it up all over again, it takes a significantly long time to even do the setup process, and can't even do sms at all.

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#12
Why is it so hard for someone to make a simple WhatsApp competitor with the same business model as the pre-facebook WhatsApp? It was build by just a few people 10 freakin years ago. I wish people valued their privacy higher than $1 a year but I guess many don't.

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#13
To be honest I feel a bit disenfranchised. I’ve used all my energy to convert all my friends to signal when the WhatsApp privacy policy fiasco happened and now they’re saying it was a waste of time since they don’t want anything to do with bitcoins.. I can’t blame them as I also don’t want this on my messaging app.

I feel like I will just give up and use WhatsApp and assume that I only had privacy pre-internet.

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#14
post #13

To be honest I feel a bit disenfranchised. I’ve used all my energy to convert all my friends to signal when the WhatsApp privacy policy fiasco happened and now they’re saying it was a waste of time since they don’t want anything to do with bitcoins.. I can’t blame them as I also don’t want this on my messaging app. I feel like I will just give up and use WhatsApp and assume that I only had privacy pre-internet.

> I feel like I will just give up and use WhatsApp and assume that I only had privacy pre-internet.

Yup, this is it. The point they've been waiting for us to cross. It was inevitable imo to not give up and surrender to it. It feels like we as a society are slowing transcending from the 4th to the 5th stage of grief.

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#15

In Jan, there was a big outcry, i thought all would move to signal. I have about 25% of the conversations in signal, but especially for groups, whatsapp is so sticky, that they seem to have broadly failed in signal, and are back to whatsapp. I continue to have individual conversations on signal with most friends, but the idea of being able to leave whatsapp seems to be much tougher than I thought.

The way I see it, you can choose to be part of the problem or not. And with a product that gets stronger the more people use it, then using it is part of the problem. You can’t complain about how So-And-So company’s products are bad, but then say “but I can’t bear to stop using em!”

I cut all of FB and their ecosystem out of my life years ago. Can’t say this one person out of billions has had an effect on the company but at least I can honestly say I’m not even a tiny part of the problem.

I don't proselytize to normal people anymore because most just aren't receptive to the message. It's like an addiction. Even when they agree with me, everyone has their little excuses as to why they can't possibly quit. And at the end of the day your one-one-billionth share of the problem amounts to peanuts, anyway.

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#16
post #13

To be honest I feel a bit disenfranchised. I’ve used all my energy to convert all my friends to signal when the WhatsApp privacy policy fiasco happened and now they’re saying it was a waste of time since they don’t want anything to do with bitcoins.. I can’t blame them as I also don’t want this on my messaging app. I feel like I will just give up and use WhatsApp and assume that I only had privacy pre-internet.

> I feel like I will just give up and use WhatsApp and assume that I only had privacy pre-internet. Yup, this is it. The point they've been waiting for us to cross. It was inevitable imo to not give up and surrender to it. It feels like we as a society are slowing transcending from the 4th to the 5th stage of grief.

I don’t think non-nerds really think about privacy online all that much. This privacy catastrophe is only felt in places like HN.

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#17

Why is it so hard for someone to make a simple WhatsApp competitor with the same business model as the pre-facebook WhatsApp? It was build by just a few people 10 freakin years ago. I wish people valued their privacy higher than $1 a year but I guess many don't.

That was Signal - he took the Facebook money and made Signal with it.

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#18
post #5

I was really hoping these privacy concerns would dissuade people from using WhatsApp. But I have a hidden agenda: I hate their web app. I just want a chat software I can use from anywhere.

Heh, let's be honest, Signal's isn't better (and I mean the desktop app, cause they don't have a web app). It randomly corrupts the sqlite database forcing me to set it up all over again, it takes a significantly long time to even do the setup process, and can't even do sms at all.

Don’t forget about the sync time if you left it closed for a long time. On my new laptop it's not so horrendous but on my old computer I just gave up using it there.

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#19
post #5

I was really hoping these privacy concerns would dissuade people from using WhatsApp. But I have a hidden agenda: I hate their web app. I just want a chat software I can use from anywhere.

Heh, let's be honest, Signal's isn't better (and I mean the desktop app, cause they don't have a web app). It randomly corrupts the sqlite database forcing me to set it up all over again, it takes a significantly long time to even do the setup process, and can't even do sms at all.

It allows you to connect from multiple devices simultaneously and you don’t need to have your mobile charged and connected. That’s second only to actually be able to send messages to me.

Re: WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal

#20
post #13

To be honest I feel a bit disenfranchised. I’ve used all my energy to convert all my friends to signal when the WhatsApp privacy policy fiasco happened and now they’re saying it was a waste of time since they don’t want anything to do with bitcoins.. I can’t blame them as I also don’t want this on my messaging app. I feel like I will just give up and use WhatsApp and assume that I only had privacy pre-internet.

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