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The Federal Trade Commission has a warning for Facebook and WhatsApp: honor your consumer privacy obligations.
In a letter to the companies Thursday, FTC Consumer Protection Bureau Director Jessica Rich said the companies must not go back on privacy promises they made to customers following news of their $16 billion merger. After announcing the acquisition, the companies said they would not change WhatsApp policies that limit the collection and sharing of users' personal information with third parties - rules that "exceed the protections currently promised to Facebook users," Rich said.

"We want to make clear that, regardless of the acquisition, WhatsApp must continue to honor these promises to consumers," Rich continued. "Further, if the acquisition is completed and WhatsApp fails to honor these promises, both companies could be in violation of Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act and, potentially, the FTC's order against Facebook."
In 2011, Facebook settled FTC charges that it deceived customers "by telling them they could keep their information on Facebook private, and then repeatedly allowing it to be shared and made public." Under the terms of the settlement, Facebook must get consumers' consent before making any changes that override their privacy settings.
The letter notes that the companies will need to get affirmative consent before making any major changes to how they use data collected from WhatsApp subscribers. Rich also warned Facebook and WhatsApp against misrepresenting the extent to which they keep user data secure and private. She also recommended that consumers be offered the chance to opt out of any new data-collection practices the companies enact.
"Hundreds of millions of users have entrusted their personal information to WhatsApp," Rich wrote. "The FTC staff will continue to monitor the companies' practices to ensure that Facebook and WhatsApp honor the promises they have made to those users."
Last month, the Electronic Privacy and Information Center (EPIC) and the Center for Digital Democracy (CDD) filed a complaint with the FTC that asked the agency to investigate Facebook's pending acquisition of WhatsApp.