A month after the WhatsApp privacy controversy drew global outrage, Google has finally reacted! Last month, WhatsApp had come under the scanner due to a privacy breach controversy highlighted in a tweet. In a social media post, Foad Dabiri, an engineer working at Twitter, shared screenshots alleging that WhatsApp had repeatedly accessed the microphone of his Google Pixel 7 Pro while he was asleep without any such instruction from him. In effect, WhatsApp, or the Google Pixel 7 Pro phone, was spying on him. Several users have echoed similar concerns about WhatsApp’s alleged privacy breach. “WhatsApp has been using the microphone in the background, while I was asleep and since I woke up at 6AM (and that’s just a part of the timeline!) What’s going on?” Foad Dabiri tweeted.
While reacting to the complaint, WhatsApp said that the user’s Pixel phone had a bug on its Android OS that misattributes information in their Privacy Dashboard. It asked Google to investigate and remediate.
Google has finally provided clarification, stating that the WhatsApp privacy issue was caused by a bug within the Android system. Google has confirmed via Android Developers account on Twitter, “A recent Android bug affecting a limited number of WhatsApp users produced erroneous privacy indicators and notifications in the Android Privacy Dashboard.” Google expressed gratitude towards WhatsApp for their partnership and extended an apology for any confusion caused to users as a result of this bug.
What should WhatsApp users do?
Google has suggested users update their WhatsApp app now to address this issue. Not just this, you must keep your WhatsApp up to date to get the latest features and bug fixes. Here is how to update WhatsApp to the latest version:
- Open the Google Play Store app on your smartphone.
- Find WhatsApp Messenger in the search bar.
- Open the app and then tap on the Update option.
- It will automatically begin the latest update.
A month after the WhatsApp privacy controversy drew global outrage, Google has finally reacted! Last month, WhatsApp had come under the scanner due to a privacy breach controversy highlighted in a tweet. In a social media post, Foad Dabiri, an engineer working at Twitter, shared screenshots alleging that WhatsApp had repeatedly accessed the microphone of his Google Pixel 7 Pro while he was asleep without any such instruction from him. In effect, WhatsApp, or the Google Pixel 7 Pro phone, was spying on him. Several users have echoed similar concerns about WhatsApp’s alleged privacy breach. “WhatsApp has been using the microphone in the background, while I was asleep and since I woke up at 6AM (and that’s just a part of the timeline!) What’s going on?” Foad Dabiri tweeted.
While reacting to the complaint, WhatsApp said that the user’s Pixel phone had a bug on its Android OS that misattributes information in their Privacy Dashboard. It asked Google to investigate and remediate.
Google has finally provided clarification, stating that the WhatsApp privacy issue was caused by a bug within the Android system. Google has confirmed via Android Developers account on Twitter, “A recent Android bug affecting a limited number of WhatsApp users produced erroneous privacy indicators and notifications in the Android Privacy Dashboard.” Google expressed gratitude towards WhatsApp for their partnership and extended an apology for any confusion caused to users as a result of this bug.
What should WhatsApp users do?
Google has suggested users update their WhatsApp app now to address this issue. Not just this, you must keep your WhatsApp up to date to get the latest features and bug fixes. Here is how to update WhatsApp to the latest version:
- Open the Google Play Store app on your smartphone.
- Find WhatsApp Messenger in the search bar.
- Open the app and then tap on the Update option.
- It will automatically begin the latest update.