News Technology Elon Musk alleges serious data privacy breach by WhatsApp: Here's what he said

Elon Musk alleges serious data privacy breach by WhatsApp: Here's what he said

Elon Musk has raised serious questions related to the safety and security of WhatsApp’s users' data. He has alleged that the platform is using users' data for targeted advertising. Here’s how it is happening as per Musk.

Elon Musk Image Source : APElon Musk

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, criticised Meta-owned WhatsApp for reportedly exporting users' data every night. A user claimed that WhatsApp exports user data nightly, which is then analysed and used for targeted advertising, essentially making users the product, rather than the customer.

Musk replied that “WhatsApp exports your user data every night”. “Some people still think it is secure,” said the tech billionaire.

Computer programmer and video game developer John Carmack responded to Musk by asking if there is any evidence that the content of messages is ever scanned or transmitted.

“I assume usage patterns and routing metadata is collected, and if you invoke a bot in a conversation you are obviously opening it up, but I am still under the impression that the message contents are secure by default,” Carmack posted on X.

Meta or WhatsApp were yet to comment on Musk's allegation.

The owner of X has previously criticised the Meta Platform run by Mark Zuckerberg. Earlier this month, the billionaire accused Meta of being overly greedy in taking credit for advertisers running campaigns on its platform. The rivalry between Musk and Zuckerberg is widely recognized.

They were apparently set for a “cage fight’ some time back -- dubbed as the fight of the century. However, the showdown between the tech leaders never happened.

Meanwhile, WhatsApp is developing a new AI feature for its platform. The upcoming feature will enable users to generate AI-based profile photos on Android smartphones. This feature will allow users to create personalized profile pictures based on their interests, personalities, and moods. It is currently under development and may not be available to beta testers who have registered through the Google Play Beta Program. Nonetheless, here's an overview of how the feature will look and function on the platform.

ALSO READ: WhatsApp upcoming feature will greatly help users with lot of unread messages: Details here

Inputs from IANS