The goal of this post is to talk and give my opinions regarding about the new controversy that WhatsApp has caused with the update of their new terms of service and privacy policy which the crowd is not happy with. However, I will mostly focus on Internet safety in general.
First before explaining everything, you will probably need some context in case you are not aware of what has happened with WhatsApp. Here is a reliable video from a YouTube channel that I have been watching for years.
Basically, the whole ordeal is that now WhatsApp and most other social media have to forcefully state what data they gather from you. To the surprise of most people, it seems that they did not expect such extensive amounts of data about them.
For my perspective, this was straightly obvious and to begin with, the new conditions are not that bad. It has been proven several times over the years that the government institutions, companies and similars, want your data. It makes complete sense because they can make lots of money with it and spy on you. We are in the technological era where data and information is what really matters even over money.
We have to at least thank Apple for exposing such shady activities but this will only discover a very small percentage of what in reality happens. Did our society really forget some of the many privacy problems that have happened in the past?
I could easily continue this list if I stopped myself and tried to remember similar experiences like the ones mentioned. Although I believe this proves my point by far so there is no reason to expand the list.
Nowadays, your phone rather than a useful tool, it is very likely a spyware for the companies with all the apps you have installed. It is unbelievable how much people really lack awareness and memory of the current situation of the world. A few years ago, privacy was a thing but it does not exist anymore in my opinion.
It is true that using virtual machines, linux distributions, VPNs and other safety measures makes you safer when browsing but it does not grant you complete protection. You can only control your own device and the information stored inside it up to a point. However, you cannot do anything about external factors like what the companies do with your data. Regardless of the procedure you follow, I am quite certain that your personal information has been leaked at least once. It could be through computer virus, database breaches, unsafe websites, signup and login forms, etc.. There are too many methods to list them all. Once the Internet gets hold of something, it is probably over for you.
Words do not matter, actions do. We know that any business words are just a covered lie, so who can we really trust other than ourselves?
On my behalf, I will keep using WhatsApp. Of course, if everybody from my contact list moves on to a new application, I will also be forced. Remember that you can find my phone number and contact me through WhatsApp in the Contact section of this website.
The Internet is providers and consumers like you and me.
