Meta’s long-awaited Twitter alternative is here, and it’s called Threads. The new social media app launches at a time when alternatives, like Bluesky, Mastodon, and Spill, are vying for users who are dissatisfied with Elon Musk’s handling of Twitter’s user experience, with its newly introduced rate limits and an uptick in 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 plenty 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 hesitant to share your personal data with a company on the receiving end of a billion-dollar fine, that’s understandable. For those who are curious, however, here’s what we know about the service’s privacy policy, what data you hand over when you sign up, and how it compares to the data collected by other options.
Threads
Threads (Android, Apple) potentially collects a wide assortment of personal data that remains connected to you, based on the information available 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 this could include is your race, sexual orientation, pregnancy status, and religion as well as your biometric data.
Threads falls under the larger privacy policy covering Meta’s other social media platforms. Want to see the whole thing? You can read it for yourself here. There’s one caveat, though. The app has a supplemental privacy policy that’s also worth reading. A noteworthy detail from this document is that while you’re able to deactivate your Threads account whenever, you must delete your Instagram if you fully want to delete your Threads account.
Below is all the data collected by Threads that’s mentioned in the App Store. Do you have the Facebook or Instagram app on your phone? Keep in mind that this data collection by Meta is comparable to the data those apps collect about you.
For Android users, the Google Play Store doesn’t require you to hand over the same amount of extensive data to try out Threads. You have more control than Apple users, since you can granularly toggle what personal data is shared with apps.
Data linked to you
Third-party advertising:
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Info (Other Financial Info)
- Location (Precise Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Info (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Info)
- Contacts
- User Content (Photos or Videos, Gameplay Content, Other User Content)
- Search History
- Browsing History
- Identifiers (User ID, Device ID)
- Usage Data (Product Interaction, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
Developer’s advertising or marketing:
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Info (Other Financial Info)
- Location (Precise Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Info (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Info)
- Contacts
- User Content ( Photos or Videos, Gameplay Content, Other User Content)
- Search History
- Browsing History
- Identifiers (User ID, Device ID)
- Usage Data (Product Interaction, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
Analytics:
- Health & Fitness (Health, Fitness)
- Purchases (Purchase History, Financial Info, Payment Info, Other Financial Info)
- Location (Precise Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Info (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Info)
- 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 Interaction, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Sensitive Info
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
Product Personalization:
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Info (Other Financial Info)
- Location (Precise Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Info (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Info)
- Contacts
- User Content (Photos or Videos, Gameplay Content, Other User Content)
- Search History
- Browsing History
- Identifiers (User ID, Device ID)
- Usage Data (Product Interaction, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Sensitive Info
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
App functionality:
- Health & Fitness (Health, Fitness)
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Info (Payment Info, Credit Info, Other Financial Info)
- Location (Precise Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Info (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Info)
- 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 Interaction, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Sensitive Info
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data
Other purposes:
- Purchases (Purchase History)
- Financial Info (Other Financial Info)
- Location (Precise Location, Coarse Location)
- Contact Info (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, Other User Contact Info)
- 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 Interaction, Advertising Data, Other Usage Data)
- Diagnostics (Crash Data, Performance Data, Other Diagnostic Data)
- Other Data