Messaging service WhatsApp has updated its global privacy policy, under which it will now share phone numbers of users with its parent company, Facebook.
A young Indian man was arrested in Pakistan after illegally crossing the border to meet a Facebook friend he wanted to marry. However, the woman told police she was not interested in marrying him. The man, Badal Babu, was arrested in the Mandi Bahauddin district of Pakistan's Punjab province on December 28. He had crossed the border to meet his Facebook friend, Sana Rani. Rani, in her statement to police, said she had been friends with Babu for the past two-and-a-half years but was not interested in marrying him. Babu's family has appealed to the Indian government to intervene for his release.
Here are some of the recent cases where WhatsApp rumours purportedly had a role to play
Do you do it out of curiosity, lack of trust or to keep tabs on your partner?
The advisory depicted the logos of social media platforms like WhatsApp and Skype to showcase that calls for such scams are made using such platforms.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday raided the premises of businessman Raj Kundra, the husband of actor Shilpa Shetty, and some others as part of a money laundering case linked to alleged distribution of pornographic content. Around 15 locations in Mumbai and Uttar Pradesh are being searched. The probe pertains to the role of suspects in alleged distribution of pornographic content through mobile applications and other modes.
Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus on Thursday said it plans to invest up to Rs 6,000 crore in its India business over the next three years. The company plans to make the investment in tranches of Rs 2,000 crore annually for the next three years under 'Project Starlight'. OnePlus on Thursday announced an annual investment of Rs 2,000 crore over the next three years to accelerate innovations in products and services in India.
The Kerala high court has observed that no religious belief stands above the Constitution.
Brought up in penury, the sensational Yashasvi Jaiswal says he now uses the experience gained from those difficult days as ammunition to conquer the battles on and off the field.
The Congress on Friday alleged that Facebook was being used as a weapon by the Bharatiya Janata Party to spread hate and fake news in the country and demanded that a joint parliamentary committee probe be conducted on the issue and laws be enacted to restrict Facebook and WhatsApp.
Sally Holkar left America and made India her home nearly 60 years ago. She went on a mission to revive a dying craft and changed the lives of rural weavers.
A bench of Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justice D Y Chandrachud said the parties should appear before the Constitution bench and formulate issues to be taken up for the hearing.
As per the new privacy policy of WhatsApp, user information would be shared with Facebook
"In response to India's payments data circular, we've built a system that stores payments-related data locally in India," WhatsApp spokesperson said in a statement.
The saffron party's IT cell had realised the power of WhatsApp early in the day and wielded it to devastating effect in the Bengal elections.
The Congress on Wednesday criticized the Centre and the Uttar Pradesh government for a stampede at the Sangam during the Maha Kumbh, blaming mismanagement and a focus on VIP movement instead of common devotees for the tragic incident. Rahul Gandhi called for reining in "VIP culture" and improving arrangements for devotees. Congress leaders expressed condolences to the families of the deceased and demanded action to prevent such incidents in the future.
In a bid to curb the spread of fake news, the US-based company is testing a feature, which enables users to detect harmful links sent and received.
The majority of these calls originate from foreign-based gangsters or their associates, using Voice Over Internet Protocol or international phone numbers, they said.
It is alleged that WhatsApp's strategy of gaining user permission for such data sharing is deceptive and surreptitious in nature and compromises privacy rights of citizens
A study published in the journal Environment and Planning F has revealed that cameras and drones originally intended for conservation activities in Corbett National Park are being misused by local government officials and men to surveil women without consent. The study, conducted by researchers from the University of Cambridge, found that forest rangers intentionally flew drones over local women to scare them and prevent them from collecting natural resources, despite their legal right to do so. The researchers argue that these technologies, deployed under the guise of wildlife monitoring, are being used to intimidate and exert power over women, invading their privacy and altering their behavior in the forest. This has had a negative impact on women's mental health, with one woman interviewed for the study being killed in a tiger attack.
The company believes that "these changes -- which we'll continue to evaluate -- will help keep WhatsApp the way it was designed to be: a private messaging app".
Hearing from Apr 18 by five-judge SC bench against WhatsApp, FB move; Centre, Trai also summoned
Why has Mumbai's cyber police taken no action against these WhatsApp groups who everyday, commit offences under the Indian Penal Code? The police cannot be unaware of their existence, observes Shruthi Marathe.
Reliance Jio and Facebook will look to use WhatsApp for delivering goods from local neighbourhood kirana stores to consumers before expanding collaboration in education and healthcare sector, billionaire Mukesh Ambani said soon after announcing the mega Rs 43,574 -crore deal. "All of us at Reliance and Jio are delighted to welcome Facebook Inc," he said in a short video message posted on the group's social media handles.
Pegasus, which is capable of attacking both Android and iOS, has been around for three years and is considered one of the most sophisticated spyware in the market.
The Facebook-owned company brought out full-page advertisements in leading newspapers as part of their awareness campaign to help users identify and prevent the spread of false information.
Messages sent through Internet-based messaging service providers such as Whatsapp, Signal, and Telegram, as well as those which are encrypted, are understood to be within the Act's ambit.
The notices were served following complaints received by the Nanded district administration of poll campaigning-related posts being circulated on these WhatsApp groups ahead the next week's state assembly elections, he said.
Tech and startup industry bodies have again pushed back against calls by telecom operators to bring over-the-top (OTT) services under a licensing regime similar to telcos, and open them up to taxation. Ahead of public consultations on the issue later this week, the Internet & Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), Nasscom and the US India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), among others, have written to the government arguing against such efforts.
The government is in no mood to buy the privacy and security argument pitched by WhatsApp, whereas the American firm says traceability will undermine end-to-end encryption and the private nature of the app, creating potential for serious abuse.
Will the Draft UGC Regulations 2025 undermine our universities? Unlikely, notes Professor Mohammad Sajjad, citing how AMU has utilised its exceptional autonomy.
WhatsApp's ambitious payment services' blueprint in India has been caught in a bind over concerns around authentication and its data storage practices.
In the quest for 'Atmanirbhar Bharat', Indian Army has developed and launched a secure messaging application named the 'Secure Application for the Internet (SAI)' that supports an end-to-end secure voice, text and video calling services for Android platform over internet, the Ministry of Defence said in New Delhi on Thursday.
Telegram, the new messaging app, is fast catching up on the popularity charts of many Indians. Himanshu Juneja lists top features of the Russian-made Telegram that beats WhatsApp hands down.
The Facebook-owned company has been under pressure for months now to put in place a mechanism to curb fake messages on its platform.
The threat message was received on the Mumbai traffic police helpline and an officer read it around midnight, the official said.
The company was awaiting clarification from the Reserve Bank of India on data storage before it took a final call on data localisation.
The announcement comes amid a rise in domestic violence cases due to the ongoing lockdown. It was found that many women who are victims of domestic violence are more vulnerable during the lockdown period.
Andhra Pradesh Police are searching for film director Ram Gopal Varma after he failed to appear for an investigation regarding his alleged offensive social media posts against Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and others. Varma's lawyer claimed that the director would cooperate with the investigation via "digital mode" as "digital policing is prevalent all over India now." However, police have stated that Varma was given ample time and has failed to show up for the investigation twice. The police are combing every place where Varma is suspected to be present.
