X Privacy Policy Gets a Significant Update
X (formerly known as Twitter) has updated its privacy policy, allowing the company to collect detailed information about users’ employment history, education background, job search activity, skills, and even biometric data. This update aligns with X’s goal of becoming an “everything app” and was made possible after Elon Musk acquired the company in October 2020 and rebranded it as X in July 2021. The collected data will be used to recommend potential jobs to users and share their profiles with prospective employers, advancing X’s vision of becoming a comprehensive service for communication, search, finance, and more.
Concerns Over Data Usage and Privacy
The updated policy reveals that X may utilize the vast amount of information it collects, including data from public sources, to train machine learning and AI models. Privacy advocates argue that users should have more control over how their information is applied for these purposes. Additionally, X intends to gather metadata related to encrypted direct messages, which includes sender, recipient, timestamp, and location information. While some technical data collection is necessary for secure messaging services, users would benefit from more transparency about the specific types of message metadata retained and its purpose.
X Users May Soon Be Able to Send Crypto
Rhode Island recently approved X’s application for a currency transmitter license, which is required for firms handling financial activities such as money transfers, including crypto assets. This development suggests that X may enable its users to send cryptocurrency in the future. However, in a previous statement, Musk denied any plans to launch a cryptocurrency, emphasizing that X is focused on becoming an all-in-one service like WeChat, a popular Chinese social media platform known for its extensive features including messaging, payments, and games.
Hot Take
X’s updated privacy policy raises concerns about data usage and privacy, as the company now has broader access to users’ personal information. While the policy enables new initiatives like job matching and AI development, users should have more control over how their data is utilized. Furthermore, the possibility of X allowing cryptocurrency transactions aligns with Musk’s vision of creating an all-in-one app similar to WeChat. However, it remains to be seen if X will follow through on this plan, considering Musk’s previous denial of launching a cryptocurrency.
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