SAN FRANCISCO: Global messaging service WhatsApp says it will start sharing the phone numbers of its users with Facebook, its parent company. That means WhatsApp users could soon start seeing more targeted ads on Facebook — although not on the messaging service itself.
The move is a subtle but significant shift for WhatsApp, which has long promised to safeguard the privacy of more than 1 billion users around the world.
WhatsApp is giving users a limited time to opt out of sharing their information with Facebook, although they must take the extra step of unchecking a box to do so.
It also says Facebook won’t post phone numbers online or give them out to anyone.
But the giant social network has been looking for ways to make money from WhatsApp since it bought the service two years ago, in an eye-popping deal ultimately worth $21.8 billion.
At the same time, Facebook has pledged not to interfere with a longstanding promise by WhatsApp’s co-founders to respect users’ privacy and keep ads off its messaging platform.
WhatsApp on Thursday offered a glimpse of its plans for turning on the money spigot, releasing new documents that describe the company’s privacy policy and the terms of service that users must agree to follow.
The documents are the first revision of those policies since 2012, before Facebook acquired WhatsApp.
One change follows through on previous hints by WhatsApp executives, who have said they’re exploring ways for businesses to communicate with customers on WhatsApp. That could include using WhatsApp to provide receipts, confirm a reservation or update the status of a delivery.
Companies could also send marketing offers or messages about sales to individual customers, according to the new documents, which note that users will be able to control or block such messages.
WhatsApp says it will continue to bar traditional display ads from its service.
“We do not want you to have a spammy experience,” the company tells users in a summary of the new policies.
Another change is potentially more controversial: WhatsApp says it will begin “coordinating” accounts with Facebook by sharing WhatsApp users’ mobile phone numbers and device information, such as the type of operating system and other smartphone characteristics.
The company says Facebook will employ the phone number internally to better identify WhatsApp users on Facebook, so it can recommend friends or show targeted advertising.
The ads would come through a Facebook program called “Custom Audiences,” which lets a business upload lists of customers and phone numbers or other contact information the business has collected from warranty cards or other sources. Facebook matches the list to users with the same information and shows them ads.
Facebook says it doesn’t give out users’ information to advertisers.
WhatsApp phone numbers are valuable to Facebook.
While the social network already has many phone numbers, it doesn’t require users to provide them, and doesn’t always have the most current number for everyone on Facebook.
But anyone on WhatsApp must provide a current phone number because that’s how WhatsApp knows where to deliver messages.
The coordination of accounts may draw fire from privacy advocates.
WhatsApp has long promised not to employ user data for advertising.
Its acquisition by Facebook two years ago sparked complaints from activists who worried the new owner would start mining WhatsApp accounts.
Though both companies pledged WhatsApp would operate separately from its parent, the Federal Trade Commission warned them publicly, in a 2014 letter, against changing how they employ WhatsApp user data without users’ consent.
WhatsApp says current users have up to 30 days to accept the new policy terms or stop using the service.
Once they accept, they have 30 more days to opt out of sharing with Facebook.
Privacy groups have praised WhatsApp for building powerful encryption into its services, making it impossible for the company or anyone else to read users’ messages.
WhatsApp promises that encryption will remain, so neither WhatsApp nor Facebook would be able to use message content for advertising purposes.
WhatsApp to share phone numbers with Facebook
WhatsApp to share phone numbers with Facebook
Saudi Arabia among top states in tech security with 99% score, says official
RIYADH: Programs and security initiatives launched by the Ministry of Interior have contributed significantly to improving quality of life in Saudi Arabia by generating high-quality data that supports planning and enables faster responses, placing the Kingdom in the global spotlight, Khalid Al-Bakr, CEO of the Quality of Life Program, told Al-Eqtisadiah.
He noted that the Unified Security Operations Centers 911 in Riyadh, the Eastern Province, Madinah, and Makkah are among the Quality of Life Program’s initiatives implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Interior, producing data that helps develop plans and ensure swift responses to incidents.
Al-Bakr added that technology has been integrated into security capabilities, including the use of body cameras for security personnel, which has helped maintain high levels of public safety.
He highlighted that reporting violations or crimes via 911 has an average response time of just two seconds, describing it as a technological leap that serves residents and visitors alike and enhances trust in security services.
The CEO of Saudi Arabia’s Quality of Life Program said the Kingdom ranks among the top countries globally in security technology, with a 99 percent rating, emphasizing that Saudi Arabia is a leader in leveraging advanced security technologies to serve residents and visitors, making it an attractive place to live and visit.
Al-Bakr explained that the major transformation in the use of technology — particularly in services provided by the Ministry of Interior — has had a significant impact on quality of life, noting that accessing services such as passport or national ID renewal has become faster and more convenient, often available at the click of a button.
