ITV

Tag: Privacy Policy

  • HC refuses to stay CCI notice to WhatsApp against its new privacy policy

    New Delhi: In a major setback for Facebook-owned WhatsApp, the Delhi high court on Wednesday refused to stay the Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) notice to the US-based social media giant seeking information for a probe into its controversial new privacy policy. 

    The vacation bench said an application seeking stay of further steps in the investigation already stands filed in which notice was issued to the Director General of CCI in which no interim relief was given by the division bench on 6 May and is listed for consideration on 9 July, adding that, “at this stage, it does not consider it appropriate to stay the operation of impugned notice dated 4 June at this stage.”

    CCI had launched an investigation into WhatsApp’s new privacy policy on 24 March, amid the raging debate over users’ privacy on social media platforms. The antitrust body had taken a prima facie view that the messaging app’s new policy is in contravention of India’s Competition Act. 

    On the other hand, the two social media platforms had contended that when the top court was looking into the privacy policy, then CCI ought not to have intervened in the issue. WhatsApp had also told the court that private conversations continued to be protected by end-to-end encryption and WhatsApp cannot read what people message each other.

    The US company had sought a stay on the CCI’s 4 June notice seeking information into the privacy policy and urged the court to issue directions to authorities concerned not to take any coercive action against the messaging application till the next date of hearing. Facebook and WhatsApp had also filed a fresh plea against a single judge order issued on 22 April dismissing their pleas against the probe CCI ordered into the instant messaging app’s new privacy policy. 

  • No accounts will be deleted because of the new update, says WhatsApp

    No accounts will be deleted because of the new update, says WhatsApp

    New Delhi: Facebook owned instant messaging platform WhatsApp has clarified that it will not delete Indian user accounts that do not accept its new privacy policy.

    The app had earlier told users that if they do not accept the new update by 15 May, they would lose access to their accounts.

    “No accounts will be deleted on 15 May because of this update and no one in India will lose functionality of WhatsApp either. We will follow up with reminders to people over the next several weeks,” said the messenger in a statement.

    The controversial privacy policy was initially expected to come into effect on 8 February but was later deferred to 15 May amid severe backlash from users. The app plans to make it mandatory for users to agree to its new data-sharing norms, a key point of which is allegedly sharing data from WhatsApp business chats with third-party apps including its parent Facebook. 

    India is WhatsApp’s largest market with over 400 million subscribers.

    The messaging platform has previously tried to assure users that the privacy update – which is for users of its business services – does not compromise its end-to-end encryption.

    “We’ve spent the last few months working to clear up confusion and misinformation. As a reminder this update does not impact the privacy of personal messages for anyone,” WhatsApp said recently.

    Meanwhile, the Delhi high court has sought a response from the government as well as Facebook and WhatsApp on a petition that challenged the new policy. The court has issued notices to the Centre, Facebook and WhatsApp and sought their stand on the petition by 13 May – two days before the policy comes into effect.

    Earlier, the court had dismissed the plea filed by Facebook and WhatsApp challenging the Competition Commission of India (CCI) order directing a probe into its controversial new privacy policy. According to CCI, WhatsApp’s new privacy policy would lead to excessive data collection and “stalking” of consumers for targeted advertising to bring in more users and is therefore an alleged abuse of dominant position.

  • Fabricating Trust with Customers

    Fabricating Trust with Customers

    Being successful in business involves several inputs. You have to set your business above the competitors' and ensure that you market wisely to make it in the industry. However, without trust from customers and honesty in the online business world, you will fail terribly. You need to make customers and clients trust you and what you are offering for sale.

    Your ecommerce website will never convert if customers are skeptical about your services or products. Build trust with visitors to your site and the target audience by doing the right things, operating under laid out regulations, and of course, delivering quality products.
    Building trust and honesty for your ecommerce website are imperative for success. Always remember that trust is not just earned easily. You will have to keep doing and delivering quality without fail over a period of time. Bad reputations shredder down all the trust you have built for years so beware. Follow the techniques below to gain confidence from your customers and increase your revenue.

    • Contact Information

    There are many scam business schemes out there on the internet today. Most will only say that they are registered but fail to provide the necessary documentation. Make sure your business is registered here for the stores in Cyprus. You will need to prove to potential customers that your online business is legitimate.
    Add a "Contact" page to your ecommerce website. It is where customers will reach you when they have questions, concerns, or just any issues about your ecommerce website. The information posted here could be your mailing addresses, your telephone numbers, and email plus any other relevant contact information. Adding your LinkedIn profile URL and Twitter username goes a long way in building credibility for your website.

    • Executive Web Design

    You should know that even if you have the best products or services for sale, but your website design looks sluggish and so outdated, then there will be question marks about its authenticity. Fraudulent ecommerce websites are usually affiliated with tired and sluggish unprofessional websites. Create a professional, user-friendly online site that is encompassed with high-definition graphics, and you will be amazed at the influx of visitors to your online business. Many people trust executive websites, as they capture their attention. They will want to remain at your site and perform further exploration.

    • Work on Broken Links

    That is one mistake that will push away clients and customers. Broken links raise many red flags and will drive away traffic from your ecommerce website. They portray unprofessionalism and lack of attention to the small things that matter.
    Build trust with your customers by ensuring there are no broken links on your site. Make sure the site is routinely checked to identify broken links in good time. Some programs and plugins block broken links and send reports or fix the issue. Look for such and include them on your website.

    • Privacy Policy

    Nowadays, the leaking of sensitive information belonging to the customers is prevalent. Therefore, it is potent to assure customers that their data is safe when they transact with you. Create a privacy policy and include it in your online business.
    That is where you assure clients that you will never share or sell their information, such as financial records, name, address, or credit information to any other third party company. This gives them peace of mind, and they will trust you and what you offer them.

    • Include Testimonials

    There are times that potential customers will only believe what another client who has transacted previously with you says. They trust what that previous customer says about your ecommerce website will be honest and genuine.
    Therefore, why not include them testimonials on your site. That will satisfy any skeptical customers who want to leave at that last minute when they had already made up their minds to buy your product. Whether the customer says your payment systems are the best or you offer excellent quality products, make sure you include that on the site for more credibility.

    • Secure the Checkout

    Ensure that your merchant service provider is reliable and trusted by many. Using PayPal and Stripe services will make your online business more authentic as these are companies that are popularly known and used by many people, for they are secure.
    You could also add some text on the site that assures customers that you have checked and updated all security measures, so their financial information is secure with you to earn their trust.

    • Show Customers your Social Media Influence

    If your online business has a strong social media base, then make sure you include that information on the site. That will build trust with the clients as firms with massive social media following prove legitimate and trustworthy. In any case, your business Twitter account is displaying 5,000+ followers to the customers; then, they will automatically trust what you offer them.

    • Cash-repayment Guarantee

    It is always crucial to be fair in business. If a customer has purchased a product from your online store and they do not like it probably because of color or something, it is important to return their money.
    Such a case will be rampant with sizable purchases. If they do not get the size of a product they wanted, give their money back. That will make your business trustworthy even to the other customers.

    • Have a Certified Seal

    Ensure that you get a certified seal from the relevant companies or authorities to rubber-stamp your credibility. Customers will be satisfied that they are safe on a website that portrays a certified seal, and will they will purchase your products without any doubts.

    • Show Your Face

    Human beings are a social species and will always be eager to know who they are transacting with. So if your online business is legitimate, what have you got to hide? Place your face on the landing pages and build trust with your customers. That will even be more potent for businesses selling services since there will be numerous interactions with the customer. 

    • Take Away

    There are millions of websites on the internet today, and almost half are fraudulent and looking to lure unsuspecting customers, and so people have become very vigilant. They will scrutinize all the ways possible to determine whether your online business can be trusted. So make sure that you have applied the above techniques to gain credibility in the eyes of the customer.  

    For online company registration visit:https://ecompany.ltd/

  • Samsung TV’s voice function threatens to intrude customers’ privacy

    Samsung TV’s voice function threatens to intrude customers’ privacy

    MUMBAI: SmartTV, Samsung’s recent innovation has a new voice-command feature, through which the internet-connected device can record everything one speaks and transmit it to a third party. 

     

    The company’s voice recognition software allows viewers to communicate with their television by talking to it. It is enabled when a microphone symbol appears. Instead of using a traditional remote control to change the channel, people can simply ask their Samsung TV to change it for them by uttering a few words.

     

    This feature is worrying people, because of guidelines in their privacy policy. The Daily Beast first spotted this sentence, which reads, “If spoken words include personal or other sensitive information, that information will be among the data captured and transmitted to a third party.”

     

    The Daily Beast makes the point that if peoples’ living room conversations are being recorded and passed on, privacy is being undermined. Homes are supposed to be places in which families and friends can talk about anything and everything.

     

    “Don’t talk about tax evasion, drug use,” Beast warned.

     

    Sensitive information, such as ‘device identifiers’ could potentially be passed to law enforcement, advertisers and other groups, according to Samsung. “If the transmission is not encrypted, a SmartHacker could conceivably turn your TV into an eavesdropping device,” the website adds.

     

    It is important to note that the function operates in this way only when the voice recognition is turned on. But that feature is probably one of the main draws to the new technology. 

     

    Responding to the criticism, the company said, “Samsung takes consumer privacy very seriously. In all of our Smart TVs we employ industry-standard security safeguards and practices, including data encryption, to secure consumers’ personal information and prevent unauthorised collection or use. Voice recognition, which allows the user to control the TV using voice commands, is a Samsung Smart TV feature, which can be activated or deactivated by the user. The TV owner can also disconnect the TV from the Wi-Fi network.”

     

    Similar concerns were also raised about Siri in the US. The service also transmits information to a third party.

     

    The privacy policy for the company’s Smart TV sets – which are on sale – advises users of the voice recognition feature that their spoken words will be “among the data captured and transmitted.”

     

    Privacy campaigners have branded the policy “outrageous” and made comparisons to George Orwell’s description of telescreens, which spied on citizens in his novel, 1984.

     

    Privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch director Emma Car said, “Samsung needs to understand that not everyone wants to be spied on by their TV. Few people would expect a TV to intrude on our privacy, yet this is increasingly becoming the case.”

     

    Samsung has insisted it takes customer privacy “very seriously” and any gathering of users’ information is carried out with the “utmost transparency.”

  • Spanish data protection agency slaps Google with a 900,000 fine

    Spanish data protection agency slaps Google with a 900,000 fine

    MUMBAI: Google has been penalised with €900,000 by the Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD) (Spanish: Agencia Espa?ola de Protección de Datos) for breaking its protection laws. The fine was imposed after Google changed its privacy policy and started combining consumer data, which people registered while using Google’s many services.

     

    Google also failed to explain to the agency about customer browsing and what it does with that information. The agency claims to have found that Google runs roughshod over local users’ data and treats it in a way that can be considered illegal.    

     

    The AEPD declared in a statement that Google that has been processing personal data in the framework of its new privacy policy is illegal.

     

    Google, according to the agency, has violated the right to protection of personal data laid down in Article 18 of Spanish Constitution and regulated in the LOPD [Organic Law of the Protection of Personal Data]. The search browser has broken three parts of the Spanish law and hence will be fined €300,000 for each incident.