Is Meta's Twitter Alternative a Privacy Nightmare?
Threads collects data across 14 categories, including one labeled 'sensitive info.' It may explain why the app is not launching in the European Union, which has stricter privacy requirements.
If you sign up for Mark Zuckerberg’s Twitter alternative, don’t be surprised if the app gobbles up your personal data.
Tomorrow, Meta is launching Threads, and its iOS app page lists the type of data it collects across 14 categories, including health and fitness, contact info, and browsing history and location. One category is simply dubbed "Sensitive Info."
Critics are calling out Threads as a potential privacy nightmare, though some clearly have an incentive to see Threads tank. “All your Threads are belong to us,” Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey tweeted, for example. Twitter’s current owner Elon Musk—who may be prepping to fight Zuckerberg in the ring—took his own jab at Thread’s privacy disclosure. “Thank goodness they’re so sanely run,” he tweeted.
Twitter's iOS app listing also includes a list of 10 data points "linked to you." The only ones cited by Threads but not Twitter are Health & Fitness, Financial Info, Sensitive Info, and "Other Data."
The data collection, however, may explain why Meta is not launching Threads in the European Union, which is known for stricter requirements on data privacy. According to The Guardian, Zuckerberg’s company is waiting for guidance from the European Commission on rules concerning user data sharing between platforms before it’ll bring Threads to the EU.
The privacy concerns could diminish the appeal of Threads when Meta’s Facebook already has a notorious reputation for data collection. Some privacy groups are sounding the alarm bells while other researchers are preparing to investigate the app’s privacy practices once it launches tomorrow.
Still, Zuckerberg’s Twitter alternative could quickly build a sizable user base to beat Twitter. That’s because Threads will tap Instagram's existing account system, making it easy for Instagram users to start posting over the new app.
It’s also important to note that Twitter, like many other social media apps, can collect a large amount of user data, such as browsing history and locations, for tracking purposes. So you're not exactly better of sticking with Twitter if you're worried about privacy. Rival social network Mastodon, on other hand, collects no user data of any kind, according to its iOS app store listing.
