Brian Acton is now crossing paths yet again with Facebook. After over more than a decade of both building as well as operating WhatsApp, the company's actual co-founder had first competed against and then eventually sold his own instant messaging app to the massive social juggernaut.
WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton
According to an article by TechCrunch, it has only been a few years since Brian Acton first parted ways with WhatsApp that reportedly made him a billionaire in a certain bitter spill over both messaging and privacy. As of the moment, Acton says that this ongoing outrage over just what Facebook has done towards the messaging service that he had helped build is now driving people towards yet again his latest project, Signal.
Acton currently serves as Signal's executive chairman to the privacy-conscious messaging app's very own holding company. He told TechCrunch in a certain interview that took place in the recent weeks that the complete user base of Signal has somewhat "exploded."
According to Acton on the video call interview, the smallest of events were able to help trigger yet the largest of outcomes. The company is now excited that they are having conversations regarding online privacy as well as digital safety while people are now flocking to Signal as the main answer towards these questions.
He also stated that it is a great opportunity for Signal to be able to shine as well as give people a choice and an alternative. It was also said to be a slow burn for three years before it had a huge explosion. He then stated that as of the moment, "the rocket is going."
Brian Acton on WhatsApp's data policy
The particular event that Acton referred to was the recent change in WhatsApp's data-sharing policy that would affect its over 2 billion users around the world. Through a certain in-app alert, WhatsApp has even asked users in the recent days for them to agree to the new terms of conditions that would allow the app to gain consent for it to share the users' personal data with its mother company, Facebook. Users are expected to be given the ultimatum by February 8 if they still wish to continue using WhatsApp.
According to an article by Wired, Acton stated that WhatsApp is now grappling with incorporating monetization features while it still protects people's privacy. This is a new "complicated policy" that now forces both WhatsApp as well as the media to go scrambling for explanations as everyone remains confused.
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Signal user growth
Acton, however, did not specify just how many users Signal has been able to gain over the past few weeks. However, he stated that the app has currently ranked at the top spot on App Store in about 40 countries and also on Google Play Store in a whopping 18 countries. Aside from Signal, another messaging app Telegram noted that over 25 million users have joined them in over 72 hours while the app currently has more than 525 million active monthly users.
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This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Urian Buenconsejo
