WhatsApp doesn’t like the idea of privacy labels
WhatsApp has opposed Apple’s requirement for developers to provide information about what user data they collect to create new privacy labels in the App Store.
WhatsApp opposed Apple and accused the company of anti-competitive behavior
WhatsApp accuses Apple of anti-competitive behavior because iMessage is preinstalled on the iPhone and does not need to be downloaded from the App Store, where new privacy shortcuts will be displayed.
We believe that labels should be consistent across native and third-party apps and reflect the stringent measures that apps can take to protect people’s personal information. It’s important that people can compare these privacy shortcuts on the apps they download to pre-installed apps like iMessage.
Apple has tried to simplify privacy labels using general terms such as “financial information” or “user-generated content.” WhatsApp states that these terms may disturb users about WhatsApp collects data, which would put it at a disadvantage.
Apple’s privacy shortcuts are part of a broader privacy effort following the iOS 14 update in September. Various updates, such as app tracking restrictions, have drawn strong criticism from Facebook, and disagreements continue between the companies.
The deadline for developers to submit required privacy information for their apps expired yesterday.
