Instant messaging app WhatsApp recently faced a barrage of criticism from several quarters for its new data privacy policy. The Facebook-owned app has now announced to delay the implementation of its new data privacy policy. WhatsApp said that it has decided to defer the policy by three months. The new policy was slated to come into effect from February 8. The app was sending alerts to users to apprise them about the updates regarding its terms and privacy policy. It asked users to accept the terms and conditions to continue services. It said accounts not accepting the terms will be deleted after February 8.

However, the recent decision to defer the policy will not impact the existing accounts that are yet to accept the terms and privacy policy. The company said that the new policy has been delayed till May 15. The company said that the decision will give more time to users to review and accept the terms. WhatsApp invited flak after it announced to change its privacy policy and made it mandatory for users to agree and accept. In India, the matter became a topic of legal scrutiny with many expressing concerns over violation of the right to privacy. In terms of numbers, India is the biggest market for WhatsApp with 340 million active users. Brazil is the second-largest market with 99 million users.

Although WhatsApp has decided to defer the new policy, it recently issued a clarification amid intense criticism. It said that individual chats on the platform will not be affected because of the policy. The company termed reports as rumors and assured that chats will be 100 percent secure. The app said that it is committed to protecting the privacy of users. It said that neither WhatsApp nor Facebook can access the messages sent and received by users. Also, they cannot listen to the calls. It added that the new policy is related to businesses as it will add more transparency and will not impact how users communicate.