German privacy regulator: WhatsApp users should switch to a more secure service

February 20, 2014

WhatsApp users should switch to a more secure messaging service now that it is being bought by Facebook, a German data protection commissioner urged Thursday. Facebook announced on Wednesday that it plans to acquire WhatsApp, a mobile messaging service with about 450 million monthly users, for $12 billion in shares, $4 billion in cash as well as $3 billion in stock options. The deal could raise important data protection issues because the personal data of its users will likely be merged with Facebook data, said Thilo Weichert, data protection commissioner for the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Link: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2099700/whatsapp-users-should-switch-to-a-more-secure-service-german-privacy-regulator-urges.html#tk.rss_all