The fine is the result of an investigation initiated in 2018. In particular, the DPC Commission began to investigate that year how WhatsApp processes its users’ data and, above all, what procedure it follows to make those data available to the Facebook company it owns. This is the largest sanction imposed by DPC in its history and the second largest imposed on a company by the new European privacy regulations.

In addition to imposing a fine of EUR 225 million, the CPD has given a clear order to WhatsApp to process user data in compliance with European law, which sanctioned Amazon with EUR 746 million for privacy reasons.

In Whatsapp, of course, they have explained that they do not agree with the decision and that they will appeal, among other things because they consider the fine to be unfair. A year ago, Facebook threatened to stop serving in Europe, as the new European regulation prevents European users’ data from being transferred to the US headquarters.

The Irish committee says that Whatsapp is not clear, neither in explaining what information each user receives, nor in explaining what they do with that information, so it does not comply with the principle of transparency required by European GPDR legislation.

Since there is no clear information, it should be remembered, for example, that the Android Facebook app contains the list of all applications installed and disinstalled by the user on your phone, as well as the names, surnames and telephone numbers of all contacts on the agenda, whether users or not of Facebook. It is to be hoped that WhatsApp will store similar data, even more so when you want to integrate more with Facebook and start offering commercial services.

You can also get out of Whatsapp!

As I told you again, barely, but as in my day I left Facebook, I recently also left Whatsapp. And, you know what? Nothing happens. People who have close contact, or the one they need, call you from time to time… and don’t know how much you save on battery and phone communications! Holy peace, you!

If it serves as inspiration, I have done the whatsapp in three or four phases:

1. Change the username, situation and image to indicate that I am coming out of Whatsapp soon.
2. Use the Watomattic robot for a while to respond automatically with a warning to all received messages.
3. Let the robot bore the heaviest contacts with your automatic messages!
4. From the Whatsapp app, access the account management section and delete the account. (This is important because, if not, WhatsApp keeps the history: who tries to contact you, when, etc.)
5. Remove the phone application.

Really, do the test, you will not regret! And well, if we regret it, it's very easy to reinstall it.

Plus, well, there are alternative messaging services that are not Whatsapp. Signal and Telegram, among others, are very fast and, unlike Whatsapp, they are in Basque!