The long-awaited Twitter alternative to Meta is here, and it’s called Threads. The new social media app launches at a time when alternatives, such as Bluesky, Mastodon, and Spill, are competing for users dissatisfied with Elon Musk’s handling of the Twitter user experience, with newly introduced rate limits and increased hate speech.
Meta owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, so the company’s attempt to recreate an online experience similar to Twitter is likely to attract a lot of normies, lurkers, and nomadic shitposters. Meta is working to incorporate Threads as part of the online Fediverse, a group of shared servers where users can interact across multiple platforms.
If you’re reluctant to share your personal data with a company on the receiving end of a billion-dollar fine, that’s understandable. For those interested, however, here’s what we know about the service’s privacy policy, what data you provide when you sign up, and how it compares to data collected by other options.
Poisons
Threads (Android, Apple) may collect a large amount of personal data that remains connected to you, based on information contained in Apple’s App Store, from your purchase history and physical address to your browsing history and health information. “Sensitive information” is also listed as a type of data collected by the Threads app. Some information that may be included are your race, sexual orientation, pregnancy status, and religion as well as your biometric data.
Threads fall under the larger privacy policy that covers Meta’s other social media platforms. Want to see the whole thing? You can read it for yourself here. There is a caveat, however. The app has an additional privacy policy that is also worth reading. An important detail from this document is that while you can deactivate your Threads account at any time, you must delete your Instagram if you want to delete your Threads account.
Below is all the data collected by Threads mentioned in the App Store. Do you have a Facebook or Instagram app on your phone? Note that this Meta data collection is comparable to data that apps collect about you.
For Android users, the Google Play Store doesn’t require you to hand over the same amount of data to try Threads. You have more control than Apple users, because you can toggle which personal data apps share.
Data relating to you
Third party advertising:
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Information (Other Financial Information)
- Location (Exact Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Information (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Information)
- Contacts
- User Content (Photos or Videos, Gameplay Content, Other User Content)
- Search history
- Browsing History
- Identifiers (User ID, Device ID)
- Usage Data (Product Interactions, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
Developer advertising or marketing:
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Information (Other Financial Information)
- Location (Exact Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Information (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Information)
- Contacts
- User Content (Photos or Videos, Gameplay Content, Other User Content)
- Search history
- Browsing History
- Identifiers (User ID, Device ID)
- Usage Data (Product Interactions, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
Analytics:
- Health and Fitness
- Purchases (Purchase History, Financial Information, Payment Information, Other Financial Information)
- Location (Exact Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Information (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Information)
- Contacts
- User Content (Photos or Videos, Audio Data, Gameplay Content, Customer Support, Other User Content)
- Search history
- Browsing History
- Identifiers (User ID, Device ID)
- Usage Data (Product Interactions, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Sensitive Information
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
Product Personalization:
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Information (Other Financial Information)
- Location (Exact Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Information (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Information)
- Contacts
- User Content (Photos or Videos, Gameplay Content, Other User Content)
- Search history
- Browsing History
- Identifiers (User ID, Device ID)
- Usage Data (Product Interactions, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Sensitive Information
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
App functionality:
- Health and Fitness
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Information (Payment Information, Credit Information, Other Financial Information)
- Location (Exact Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Information (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Information)
- Contacts
- User Content (Emails or Text Messages, Photos or Videos, Audio Data, Gameplay Content, Customer Support, Other User Content)
- Search history
- Browsing History
- Identifiers (User ID, Device ID)
- Usage Data (Product Interactions, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Sensitive Information
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
Other purposes:
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Information (Other Financial Information)
- Location (Exact Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Information (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Information)
- Contacts
- User Content (Photos or Videos, Gameplay Content, Customer Support, Other User Content)
- Search history
- Browsing History
- Identifiers (User ID, Device ID)
- Usage Data (Product Interactions, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
