I’m not sure why aside from the fact that end-to-end encryption should make it harder (impossible in theory) for them to read your messages. They still have access to your contacts book, which is kinda scary since some people I know keep Social Security numbers in their contacts.

They don't have to be able to read your messages server-side to pick out keywords client-side and send those unencrypted.

It would still be truthful: all messages are encrypted e2e, but the app on your device parses decrypted messages to "deliver relevant ads".

Also:

>kinda scary since some people I know keep Social Security numbers in their contacts.

That is absolutely terrifying.

> some people I know keep Social Security numbers in their contacts

That's now how this works. That's not how any of this works!

He knows.

I too have deleted FB account long ago but I use Whatsapp. I realize it is much harder to quit Whatsapp than Facebook because I really 'need' whatsapp. But as of now I don't see any strong reason to quit Whatsapp because Facebook isn't using it to show ads in creepy ways.

If only I could persuade my family members and few friends to ditch Whatsapp...

I've been part of moving several hundred people away from WhatsApp so it's definitely doable. (My family was the worst. They're possibly more stubborn than me.)

Where did you move them? I moved a few to Signal, but most complain that their friends aren't on there and the quality isn't quite as good.

Telegram. Maybe I'd chosen something else today but it has served us very well.

But is it though? WhatsApp is an inherently less monetizable platform due to e2e encryption. If all of the people who use Facebook completely switch to WhatsApp the revenue of FB will plummet.

E2E but both ends are Facebook...

How? Isn't it encrypted from the senders device and decrypted at the receivers?

Which both run an app made by Facebook.

The name is different... ;)