Human interactions are necessary, and for this generation, connecting with others often refers to the “digital form” where friends catch up and chitchat via text messages and voice notes. For years now, people have been opting to use the WhatsApp application as their comfort zone for private chats and exchanging info, believing it’s the best choice for cultivating their connections and carrying on with their encrypted conversation with complete discretion and privacy, but is this coming to an end now? Are people leaving behind the application for good, switching to Signal App instead?
WhatsApp and #newupdate hashtags have been amongst the top trending on Twitter for a few days now, with people expressing their resentment and disapproval of the new update that has been put into effect, which you’re forced to assent to before the 8th of February, or else your account will be terminated.
Updated term of services allow WhatsApp to share information with the Facebook family of apps, including phone number, contacts, IP address, and sharing commercial user data, which of course sparked fear and controversy because it’s the opposite of what the app has always been promising it’s users.. ultimate privacy.
The whole point of the new terms is to allow people to communicate with businesses and third-party service providers that transact on these platforms, to better present relevant advertisements to users, which technically removes the option of “not hav[ing] your WhatsApp account information shared with Facebook” which was what made the app special all along.
With the new privacy policy coming into force starting February 8, privacy experts and anti-trust bodies raised an alarm, suggesting that people switch to alternative messaging apps so users wouldn’t have to sacrifice their privacy. Tesla CEO Elon Musk was on the front line calling for a shift to Signal as a safer alternative to WhatsApp and Facebook. So why was Signal the app he went for?
Signal is a typical messaging app that can be found in normal marketplaces like Google Play and App store, enabling users to send texts, videos, audio and picture messages protected by end-to-end encryption. You can also use it to make voice and video calls, either one-to-one or with a group. The app has existed for years and is used by people like Edward Snowden, for it features various options for users, with complete data security and privacy.
The war waged against WhatsApp has already left it’s effect on the company, as new installs of WhatsApp fell by 11% in the first seven days of 2021, and on the other end, more than 100,000 users installed Signal across the app stores of Apple and Google in the last two days. So, are people really switching to Signal and is this goodbye for WhatsApp?