Over the past week or so we’ve seen a lot of chatter about people shifting their messaging platform from WhatsApp to Signal as a result of fallout from a change to its privacy policy. People were concerned that WhatsApp was going to start funneling data to its parent company Facebook.
There’s been subsequent clarification, but the damage has been done.
But what data do these apps have about you? That seems like a good place to start when comparing services.
Must read: iOS 14 pro tip: One setting change for better photos
And fortunately, Apple has made this easier for us by requiring that companies publish their privacy policies and come clean about what they do with your data.
So, let’s take a look at what information this gives us on WhatsApp, Signal, and Telegram. And for a bit of perspective, let’s also look at Facebook.
Data linked to you – The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
Developer’s Advertising or Marketing
Identifiers
Usage Data
Analytics
Purchases
Location
Contact Info
User Content
Identifiers
Usage Data
Product InteractionAdvertising Data
Diagnostics
Crash DataPerformance DataOther Diagnostic Data
Product Personalization
User Content
App Functionality
Purchases
Financial Info
Location
Contact Info
Email AddressPhone Number
Contacts
User Content
Customer SupportOther User Content
Identifiers
Usage Data
Diagnostics
Crash DataPerformance DataOther Diagnostic Data
Other Purposes
Contact Info
Identifiers
Usage Data
Signal
Data not linked to you: The following data, which may be collected but is not linked to your identity, may be used for the following purposes:
App Functionality
Contact Info
Telegram
Data linked to you – The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
App Functionality
Contact Info
Contacts
Identifiers
Data used to track you – The following data may be used to track you across apps and websites owned by other companies:
Other Data
Contact Info
Physical AddressEmail AddressNamePhone Number
Identifiers
Data linked to you – The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
Third-Party Advertising
Purchases
Financial Info
Location
Precise LocationCoarse Location
Contact Info
Physical AddressEmail AddressNamePhone NumberOther User Contact Info
Contacts
User Content
Photos or VideosGameplay ContentOther User Content
Search History
Browsing History
Identifiers
Usage Data
Product InteractionAdvertising DataOther Usage Data
Diagnostics
Crash DataPerformance DataOther Diagnostic Data
Other Data
Developer’s Advertising or Marketing
Purchases
Financial Info
Location
Precise LocationCoarse Location
Contact Info
Physical AddressEmail AddressNamePhone NumberOther User Contact Info
Contacts
User Content
Photos or VideosGameplay ContentOther User Content
Search History
Browsing History
Identifiers
Usage Data
Product InteractionAdvertising DataOther Usage Data
Diagnostics
Crash DataPerformance DataOther Diagnostic Data
Other Data
Analytics
Health & Fitness
Purchases
Financial Info
Payment InfoOther Financial Info
Location
Precise LocationCoarse Location
Contact Info
Physical AddressEmail AddressNamePhone NumberOther User Contact Info
Contacts
User Content
Photos or VideosAudio DataGameplay ContentCustomer SupportOther User Content
Search History
Browsing History
Identifiers
Usage Data
Product InteractionAdvertising DataOther Usage Data
Sensitive Info
Diagnostics
Crash DataPerformance DataOther Diagnostic Data
Other Data
Product Personalization
Purchases
Financial Info
Location
Precise LocationCoarse Location
Contact Info
Physical AddressEmail AddressNamePhone NumberOther User Contact Info
Contacts
User Content
Photos or VideosGameplay ContentOther User Content
Search History
Browsing History
Identifiers
Usage Data
Product InteractionAdvertising DataOther Usage Data
Sensitive Info
Diagnostics
Crash DataPerformance DataOther Diagnostic Data
Other Data
App Functionality
Health & Fitness
Purchases
Financial Info
Payment InfoCredit InfoOther Financial Info
Location
Precise LocationCoarse Location
Contact Info
Physical AddressEmail AddressNamePhone NumberOther User Contact Info
Contacts
User Content
Emails or Text MessagesPhotos or VideosAudio DataGameplay ContentCustomer SupportOther User Content
Search History
Browsing History
Identifiers
Usage Data
Product InteractionAdvertising DataOther Usage Data
Sensitive Info
Diagnostics
Crash DataPerformance DataOther Diagnostic Data
Other Data
Other Purposes
Purchases
Financial Info
Location
Precise LocationCoarse Location
Contact Info
Physical AddressEmail AddressNamePhone NumberOther User Contact Info
Contacts
User Content
Photos or VideosGameplay ContentCustomer SupportOther User Content
Search History
Browsing History
Identifiers
Usage Data
Product InteractionAdvertising DataOther Usage Data
Diagnostics
Crash DataPerformance DataOther Diagnostic Data
Other Data