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clear the air
Facebook really wants you to know its Messenger app isn't spying on you
The site has put together a post which aims to dispel the myths surrounding its app.
WHEN FACEBOOK STOPPED users from accessing the messaging feature on its main app and directed them towards the Messenger app, it upset many people.
This wasn’t helped by panic over the number of permissions that the app requested on the Android version.
Despite many of them being standard practice (the reason why apps ask for those permissions is for basic app functionality), it received a vast number of negative reviews as a result.
The backlash may have been a little too much for the company, as one of the members from its Messenger team has put together a quick post explaining why it asks for certain permissions.
Those using the main app will have seen a banner saying how they can learn how the app really works.
You might have heard the rumours going around about the Messenger app. Some have claimed that the app is always using your phone’s camera and microphone to see and hear what you’re doing. These reports aren’t true, and many have been corrected. Still, we want to address some concerns that you might have.
The two main areas addressed was how the app actually uses the camera and microphone - if you’re taking a photo within the app, it needs permission to turn on your phone’s camera so it can capture it, and it doesn’t turn on your camera or microphone when you’re not using it.
It also explained why it’s asking people to download Messenger, stating that it allows people to respond to messages faster and is more efficient than on the main app.
Despite the backlash, Facebook’s Messenger app has been incredibly popular with more than 500 million Android users downloading it since it was first released.
Read: Now you can officially find out how (un)popular you are on Twitter >
Read: Microsoft begins cleaning up the Windows store by removing 1,500 fake apps from it >
