Facebook’s plans to buy the mobile messaging service WhatsApp have been challenged by 
several non-profit organisations.
Opponents to the deal, including groups such as the Electronic Privacy Information Center and the Center for Digital Democracy, want US regulators to challenge the deal as it could breach users’ existing privacy arrangements.
However, Facebook claim that they will honour the privacy arrangements by operating as a separate company, meaning they won’t collect a user’s data for targeted advertising.
Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practice
Both non-profit groups, who put together the complaint to the US Federal Trade Commission, claims that WhatsApp was created with a commitment to not collect users’ details in order to advertise to them. As a result, users of the app have provided detailed, personal information, which Facebook have routinely made use of for advertising purposes.
“The proposed acquisition will therefore violate WhatsApp users’ understanding of their exposure to online advertising and constitutes an unfair and deceptive trade practice, subject to investigation from the Federal Trade Commission,” according to the groups.
Both the Electronic Privacy Information Center and the Center for Digital Democracy do research and work on protection for consumers online.
The other side of the argument
Mark Zuckerberg claims that the £11bn deal will honour its commitments to security and privacy, and that the fact that the majority of its revenue comes from advertising shouldn’t influence people’s trust of this particular business transaction.
However, opposition has noted that in the past Zuckerberg has amended an acquired-company’s privacy policies, the most notable of which being Instagram back in 2012.
It is now up to the FTC to decide whether the acquisition should go ahead, and if it does, whether certain conditions should be put in place.
