Facebook’s data practices are causing problems within the company, too. Jan Koum, chief executive of the popular chat app WhatsApp, which Facebook purchased for $19…
Facebook’s data practices are causing problems within the company, too.
Jan Koum, chief executive of the popular chat app WhatsApp, which Facebook purchased for $19 billion in 2014, is leaving the company after Facebook has repeatedly tried to use WhatsApp members’ personal data, according to the Washington Post .
WhatsApp, which has 1.5 billion monthly users, encrypts conversations users have on the platform. Facebook has reportedly been trying to weaken those encryptions to access user data that can be monetized.
It is not known when Koum will officially leave his post, but he will also step down from Facebook’s board of directors, according to the report.
Facebook has faced intense scrutiny since it was revealed in March that it leaked the private information of nearly 90 million users without their permission to Cambridge Analytica .
The scandal led WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton to delete his profile on the social network.
In a tweet at the time, Acton said: “It is time. #deletefacebook,” referencing the online movement that gained steam in the wake of data leak revelations.
