WhatsApp has gone into damage control mode following the recent backlash over its privacy policy, announcing that it will extend the deadline for accepting its latest terms of service by more than three months

While WhatsApp insists that there are no major changes to its privacy policy, the deadline for accepting the new terms of service has been pushed back from February 8 to May 15 This will give users even more time to choose between accepting the new terms or moving to another service

This comes after reports that WhatsApp has changed the way it shares data with its parent company, Facebook, and all users will have to accept, even if they had opted out in the past This angered many people as rumors spread that WhatsApp would share message content and contact lists with Facebook

WhatsApp has since attempted to clarify that messages are encrypted and their contents remain hidden, and that neither WhatsApp nor Facebook has access to call history, location information, or contact lists But that didn't stop millions from fleeing to services like Signal and Telegram, and Signal struggled to respond, even taking down most of the weekend

The new deadline of May 15 was set to give people more time to understand the new policy changes; WhatsApp claims that it has not changed the way it handles private conversations, only chats with companies that will have more data shared with Facebook

Specifically, data will only be shared if the company with whom you are conversing uses Facebook's hosting services or makes payments through WhatsApp Similarly, companies would be able to contact each other through Facebook by placing a WhatsApp button on their Facebook page

Whether this will stop people from leaving WhatsApp is another matter entirely This situation is a reminder that Facebook owns WhatsApp, and there is always the possibility that the relationship between the two will become stronger Apple's changes to its app store policies have revealed just how much data WhatsApp and other Facebook apps have access to

Regardless of how minor the privacy policy change may be, if you are thinking of leaving WhatsApp, we urge you to take a look at WhatsApp's alternative apps Similarly, if you prefer Signal's encryption and strong privacy policy, please see our guide to switching from WhatsApp to Signal