When WhatsApp decided to update its terms and privacy policy, it didn¡¯t anticipate the uproar it received from its users.?
The new policy which revealed its plans of sharing user data with its parent company Facebook didn¡¯t sit well with most of its users, that caused millions of users to migrate from the beloved texting platform to look for secure messaging alternatives that were in no way connected with Facebook.
Many settled for Signal while others were looking at Telegram, and this flood of users was something the company didn¡¯t anticipate. What¡¯s more is that this mass exodus consisted of not just ordinary users like us, but also world leaders.?
This was highlighted by Telegram¡¯s founder, Pavel Durov in a blog post, where he revealed Turkish President Recep Erdogan and Brazil leader Jair Bolsonaro were among the many politicians who had come aboard Telegram in the past few days. This list also included French President Emmanuel Macron and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Durov welcomed them, stating, ¡°We are honoured that political leaders, as well as numerous public organisations, rely on Telegram to combat misinformation and spread awareness about important issues in their societies."?
On Tuesday, Durov revealed to the world that in just 72 hours, Telegram recorded 25 million new users on its platform, pushing the total number of users on the platform over 500 million.?
On Thursday he added that more users have made Telegram their new home for texting and that this is the ¡®largest digital migration in human history¡¯.
Durov said, ¡°Since my last post, the already massive influx of new users to Telegram has only accelerated. We may be witnessing the largest digital migration in human history. By removing the manipulative algorithms that have become synonymous with 2010s technology platforms, Telegram channels restore transparency and integrity to public ¡®one-to-many¡¯ communication.¡±
Did you make the switch from WhatsApp? Which platform did you switch to? Tell us in the comments below.?