Meta is looking to clarify how its data collection process works within business chats on Messenger, with the addition of new labels to the workflow. This will differentiate between business and personal interactions on the app.
As you can see in this example, business chats in Messenger will now include a “Business Chat” label in the top title bar, while there is also a new “Business Chats and Your Privacy” shortcut link. Tapping it will bring up the second explanatory screen above.
The main intention here is to clarify that while end-to-end encryption is being used Rolled out to all personal chats on MessengerIn business chats, the user shares information with Meta and the company itself, which could then be used for future marketing and ad targeting purposes.
In other words, business chats are not private and are not protected by the same encryption tools by default. As such, Meta seeks to ensure that users are aware that they are submitting their information for a potentially greater purpose within these interactions.
According to Meta:
“We are giving people more information about how their marketing messages can be used to improve their experience. Depending on where people live, this could include improved product experiences, such as faster responses, personalized ads, and better quality AI.”
Meta says it began rolling out these tags earlier this year and is now expanding them to more users.
“This does not represent a change to our privacy policy or terms of service and does not apply to personal messages with friends and family.”
Essentially, Meta is trying to make sure people know that when they interact with a business on Messenger, they won’t have the same privacy as when they interact with friends.
This is important to note, although even so, it seems that the initial notification should be more explicit and should directly indicate, in the chat header, that the exchange is not protected by E2EE.
But at least it’s something, and it’s an important step toward providing greater transparency and understanding within the process, especially now that more elements of Messenger are moving to encryption by default.
