South Africa: Issued legal analysis on Whatsapp’s privacy policy under POPIA

On 3 March 2021, South Africa’s Information Regulator announced it had provided a legal analysis of some of the concerns that it has about the privacy policy of Facebook’s Whatsapp. The Information Regulator noted that users who do not accept the terms by 15 May 2021 will not be able to read or send messages from the app. Furthermore, the Information Regulator highlighted that the processing of cellphone numbers as accessed on the user’s contact list for a purpose other than the one for which the number was specifically intended at collection does not require consent from the data subject, but prior authorisation from Regulator. Accordingly, WhatsApp cannot without obtaining prior authorisation process any contact information of its users for a purpose other than the one for which the number was specifically intended at collection, with the aim of linking that information jointly with information processed by other Facebook companies. In addition, the Information Regulator noted its concern that citizens of the European Union would receive higher privacy protection than those in South Africa, despite having similar data protection legislations. Finally, the Information Regulator expressed its willingness to have a round-table discussion to ensure that there is full compliance by the WhatsApp Privacy Policy with the provisions of the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).