Data Privacy Day is celebrated on January 28, every year, with the objective of spreading awareness on Privacy. Observance of the day is “an international effort of creating awareness on importance of respecting privacy, enabling trust and safeguarding data”.

Key Facts

• Privacy is a means of ensuring online safety for all individuals.
• It has become an important topic of discussion in digitally connected world, specifically at the time of covid-19 pandemic as more people are forced to spend time in virtual world.
• Failure in safeguarding one’s privacy could result in exploitation as well as criminal offences against internet users.

Why people are more concern about data?

People are more concern about protecting their data, with the proliferation of instant messaging mobile applications like WhatsApp and Telegram.

Security features launched by applications

To ensure data privacy, companies have rolled out many security features on mobile application, such as “end-to-end encryption”. This feature ensure that exchange of information is not visible to anyone and it remain restricted to two people involved in particular conversation. WhatsApp and Telegram are providing this feature.

Government’s pressure on companies

Governments from different companies have been putting pressure on these companies to allow them to access these conversations. They want tech companies to create “back doors” for law enforcement in a bid to access encrypted platforms. As per government, this will create a safe space for citizens because government will clamp down on bad actors and mischief-makers, by preventing the spread of viral misinformation.

Available security measures on applications like WhatsApp

1. Two-Step verification:It provides an extra layer of security to their end-to-end encrypted messaging account.
2. Touch ID or Face ID lock:This feature is available in a wide variety of phone manufactured by Apple, Samsung, Google etc. Some phones even offer under screen fingerprint sensors, that use ultrasound to build image of fingers.
3. Forward limits: Applications like WhatsApp have set a limit on forwarding messages to five chats at once. Thus, it restricts the sharing of information and checking the spread misinformation.
4. Additional limits for viral messages:WhatsApp have set additional limits on messages, that have been sent many times. Such messages are labelled as “Forwarded many times”
5. Disappearing messages:This feature was launched on WhatsApp. Once this feature is enabled, new messages sent in individual or group chat will disappear after seven days. WhatsApp also launched ‘view once’ feature. It makes photos and videos disappear after they’ve been opened.
6. Admin controls:Admins can decide who can send messages within groups. Similarly, in Telegram, secret chats are not part of its cloud. It can only be accessed on devices of origin.