The EU Commission and consumer advocates are demanding clarification

Because of controversial data protection rules, the EU Commission, together with consumer advocates, is demanding clarification from the WhatsApp messenger service. Together with a network for consumer protection (CPC), a corresponding letter was sent to the company belonging to the Meta group. This was announced by the Brussels authority on Thursday.

Clarification is required regarding the terms of use and the data protection rules of 2021.

The messenger service introduced new data protection conditions in May last year. One of the concerns of many critics was that more data would be shared with the parent company. The company rejected this. After a fine of 225 million euros from the Irish data protection authority, WhatsApp finally supplemented the usage rules with further information.

The responsible EU Commissioner Didier Reynders now demanded: “WhatsApp must ensure that consumers understand what they agree to and how their personal data is used.” He expects the company to comply with EU rules.

That is why an official dialogue has now begun. The messenger service has until the end of February to make specific commitments on how to respond to the concerns.

Specifically, according to the information, it is about whether consumers are clear enough about the consequences of agreeing to the new rules. And the in-app notifications asking consumers for consent.

In addition, one is concerned about the exchange of personal user data between WhatsApp and third parties or other companies in the Meta Group.