WhatsApp Messenger 12+

This app has been central in keeping my family connected. In my community, people often go to school and/or move to live all around the world. When my first daughter went to school in a different hemisphere than the rest of us, we all had to have different passcodes so as to be able to call each other without spending hundreds of dollars, sometimes for even one voice call. In the years before we found WhatsApp, I could only manage to get in touch with family members individually. I certainly couldn’t keep contact day by day - there were too many of them, thank G-d. Now we not only have a family chat, we can have impromptu family video calls. WhatsApp actually saved the life of one of my children, because they were too sick to even know how sick they were, much less call for help. When a sibling discovered what was going on, my children ended up in the hospital for a few days. I don’t have the time or space to describe the incredible asset WhatsApp has been for my family!

WhatsApp was what I used when I studied abroad to communicate with friends and family, but I unfortunately the app has so many issues that I refuse to use it even if that means it will be more difficult to communicate with those same friends and family living abroad. The app does provide some privacy in messaging, but based on the updated service agreements, it seems clear that Meta plans to use and train large language models on private messages. Additionally, WhatsApp has a series of issues regarding collecting metadata of its users and having nearly total freedom to monetize that information. I hate the idea of an app that claims to provide private and secure communication that is simultaneously monetizing my data.

The app is also filled with scammers. I receive near daily notifications from massive cryptocurrency scam groups adding me to group chats promising “massive returns on my investment.” No matter how many times I report these groups, they just keep popping up. I blame the extraction of all contacts from your phone that WhatsApp uses to help you communicate with others through the app. It’s clear that Meta is doing nothing to address these issues and they continue to violate our data while doing nothing.

If I could go back and never use the app in the first place, I would do it in a heartbeat. There other options for communication with family and friends abroad that does not come with the same issues that WhatsApp promises.

WhatsApp is an absolute disaster of an app, and Mark Zuckerberg should be ashamed of what he's turned it into. The platform is nothing more than a data-harvesting machine, stealing every ounce of personal information it can get its hands on. From your private messages to your contacts and location, nothing is sacred. The moment you install WhatsApp, you’ve essentially signed away your privacy, with WhatsApp profiting off your data in ways most people don’t even understand.

Let’s not forget that WhatsApp shares your data with advertisers and even other entities within Zuckerberg's empire, constantly bombarding you with targeted ads and influencing your every move. The so-called “privacy settings” are laughable at best—they are intentionally confusing and buried deep within layers of menus, ensuring that most users never have a chance to protect themselves. Zuckerberg and his team have built an empire on the backs of people’s privacy violations, all for the sake of profit. It's no wonder the app is riddled with security issues, invasive tracking, and personal data exploitation.

WhatsApp has become more about exploiting its users than providing any kind of meaningful communication. If you're still using WhatsApp, you're essentially handing over your life for free—while Zuckerberg and his company profit off of it. Do yourself a favor: delete your account and find a platform that values your privacy. WhatsApp is a data thief, plain and simple.