WhatsApp says Payments is secure, transaction details not shared with Facebook

WhatsApp has clearly said that it does not share payment data of its users with parent company Facebook.

In an embarrassing revelation, the social media giant admitted to sharing personal data of its users. In a recent US Congressional hearing, its founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologised for sharing details of users with data consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. Following this, questions were raised on the security features of WhatsApp, a cross-messaging platform, which was acquired by Facebook in 2014.

The cross-platform messaging and Voice over IP app, which is testing a payments feature for a limited number of users in India, said that the transaction details of users are safe and not shared with Facebook.

“When you make a payment, WhatsApp creates the necessary connection between the sender and recipient of the payment, using Facebook infrastructure. We pass the transaction information to the bank partner, which is called a PSP (payment service provider), and to NPCI (National Payment Corporation of India), so they can facilitate the movement of funds between the sender's and receiver's bank accounts. Facebook does not use WhatsApp payment information for commercial purposes, it simply helps pass the necessary payment information to the bank partner and NPCI,” it said in a statement.

However, in “some cases”, it “may share limited data to help provide customer support to you or keep payments safe and secure,” the statement read.

WhatsApp’s FAQ section clearly states that security is of utmost importance and it has applied the same to Payments.