Complete transparency and absolute privacy focal points for Wafer in lead up to GDPR compliance
Luxembourg, May 24, 2018 - Wafer Messenger, the increasingly popular messaging application, has announced that it has completed its efforts to fully comply with the EU’s GDPR standards. The new set of regulations, which will come into effect tomorrow May 25, 2018 will “harmonize data privacy laws across Europe, to protect all EU citizens data privacy and to reshape the way organizations across the region approach data privacy”. Wafer will go a step further by providing full transparency and absolute privacy not only to its European users, but to all its users worldwide.
“Since our launch in September 2017, privacy and transparency have been at the core of our ethos; we strongly believe that mobile phone users have the right to absolute privacy as well as the right to know what happens to their data”, says co-founder and CEO Simone La Torre. “Even before working towards GDPR compliance, we have been well ahead of our competitors in this regard as we are one of the only communication platforms that can tell our users with utmost confidence that their personal data is not, and never will be, used for any commercial purpose”.
In order to demonstrate Wafer’s willingness to provide transparency, La Torre explains how Wafer processes data. “When you send or receive a Wafer message it is immediately deleted from the servers” he says. “If that message contained a multimedia file, a picture or an audio file for example, we store it on encrypted servers for 30 days - so that it can be retrieved if you would want to download it again. After those 30 days, these media files are automatically deleted”. Users can sidestep this 30-day storage by deleting the messages that they sent. When deleting any type of message, it will be immediately and permanently removed from both parties’ phones as well as the server.
Additionally, if Wafer users should want to delete their account, they can do so instantly. “We are confident in our absolute privacy promise and believe there should be no games in regards to handling user data. If a Wafer user chooses not to use Wafer any longer they can delete their account, with associated data, in its entirety”, La Torre asserts.
Finally, to set an example for an industry that has recently come under heavy scrutiny for how user data is managed, Wafer Messenger has decided to extend its GDPR efforts to the rest of the world. “We consider all our users equal, and do not believe some should get preferential treatment based on their geographical location. It is therefore that we have extended these efforts to the the whole world. We hope that by leading the way, other mobile applications will follow suit”, La Torre concludes.
Wafer Messenger was released for iOS and on Android in September 2017 and bases itself on three pillars; “Endless Creativity”, “Limitless Reach” and “Absolute Privacy”. The app allows its users to create messages impossible to replicate on any other mobile platform by giving them the opportunity to combine up to six types of media in one single message. Moreover, Wafer lets its users chat and initiate free calls with 100% of their contacts; even those who are not on Wafer (yet). Finally, since its inception, it has promised its users “Absolute Privacy”. In practice this means no spying, no data mining for commercial purposes, and no pushing of ads.
For press enquiries please contact press@wafer.me
Find here Wafer Messenger’s full Privacy Policy and updated Terms of Service.
About Wafer:
Wafer is an international startup with offices in Luxembourg, the United States, and India. The company officially launched in September 2017 after successfully raising €940,000. Wafer Messenger has been installed on over 600.000 smartphones worldwide within the first 6 months on the market and the team works constantly to release new features for its growing user base.
Co-founder and chief executive Simone La Torre was born and raised in Italy, where he earned a Masters degree in Space Engineering before pursuing a second Masters in Business Management in France. He has worked in Luxembourg, The Netherlands, and the USA.
Partner co-founder and chief operating officer Rob Llanes was raised in the USA, where he has a Masters degree in Engineering Management from Northwestern University and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Illinois. He has lived and worked in the United Kingdom, Luxembourg, and various cities within the USA.