Are there messenger apps that can match WhatsApp in terms of functionality, but don't collect chat metadata or at least maintain a privacy-oriented approach to it? Yes, there are. — Pixabay
LOS ANGELES: In what may be the final straw for some users, ads are officially coming to WhatsApp in an upcoming version that will incorporate Meta's biggest source of revenue into one of the world's biggest messenger apps.
"Sponsored" brands are set to appear in WhatsApp's Updates tab, where users can see the latest from both channels they follow and status updates from their contacts, Meta announced on June 16.
The sister company to Instagram and Facebook said it won't use your personal messages and call logs for advertising purposes.
But WhatsApp does use information about you – how you use your phone, which country or city you're in, what channels you follow, what language you speak and what contacts you have – to create a profile of you for Meta's advertisers.
But nobody has to tolerate this if they don't like it. There are plenty of easy messenger alternatives widely in use, and switching is easy. Anyone who wants to turn their back on WhatsApp just needs a strategy. And that sounds more difficult than it is.
It can be done in just two or three steps: find a messenger alternative, back up WhatsApp chats if necessary, then delete your account.
Find your alternative: Are there messenger apps that can match WhatsApp in terms of functionality, but don't collect chat metadata or at least maintain a privacy-oriented approach to it?
Yes, there are. Signal and Wire are among the most widely recommended in security circles, and both are open source, securely end-to-end encrypted and available as Android, iOS and desktop applications. Telegram is another major alternative, but some security experts believe the company also has a worrying policy on data privacy.
If in doubt, you can try out a few new messengers at the same time. Before taking the plunge, you should probably check if many of your contacts are already on your new messenger platform.
Save your old messages: If you're ditching WhatsApp, you may want to keep your old messages and media (photos, videos and voice messages).
No problem. Open the individual or group chat you want to save, tap the three-dot menu at the top right (Android) or Settings (iOS), select "More/Chat export" and specify in the next window that the media should also be saved.
Then you choose whether the text document with the chat history and media files should be stored on the device or in your cloud. Since, according to WhatsApp, a maximum of the 10,000 most recent messages can be saved in this way, you should repeat the whole procedure for the respective chat and specify that no media should be saved. This way you get a second text document with up to 40,000 messages.
Delete your account: Taking this third step before the second is dangerous. If a WhatsApp account is deleted, all chats and backups are also deleted – irretrievably.
So you've backed up everything that should be backed up? Good. To leave WhatsApp, tap on the three-dot menu or settings at the top right and select "Settings/Account/Delete account".
Next, enter your mobile phone number in international format (with the +00 country code and without the first zero of the area code) in the corresponding field. With a final tap on the red "Delete my account" button, the job is done and the app can then be removed from your smartphone. – dpa
