Telegram becomes most downloaded app on Google Play Store, highest installs from India

WhatsApp's new privacy policy has irked many of their users, and they are leaving in droves for other messaging platforms. The company is facing a massive drop in its user base while simultaneously companies like Signal and Telegram's downloads are through the roof in the last couple of months.

Telegram has now become the most downloaded non-gaming app worldwide in January 2021, with 24 percent of the total downloads coming from India, followed by Indonesia at 10 percent, according to the data released by Sensor Tower.

“Telegram has attained the top position in the overall downloads (non-game) on Google Play Store moving from ninth position in the previous month, December 2020. The social messenger has also entered the list of top 10 most downloaded (non-game) apps on App Store, directly gaining the fourth position,” the Sensor Tower report said.

It is quite an achievement considering that Telegram was ranked at ninth position in terms of downloads on Google Play in the month of December.

After Telegram, TikTok came in a close second followed by Signal and Facebook in January.     

WhatsApp has made it mandatory for its users to accept new terms before they come into effect on February 8. Those who will not accept the updated privacy policy will not be able to use the app anymore.

After the users received an in-app notification to accept the new policy, they took to social media to share their concerns and complain about the issue of data privacy. Some users suggested that they were switching from WhatsApp to another platform, Telegram.

Telegram is seen as a better option by many when they consider the privacy and security of their online communication. The mobile app enthusiasts shared tables and graphs to compare the two platforms as well.

WhatsApp keeps user information under the Automatically Collected Information header and further categorises it into four sub-heads. These are Location Information, Device, and Connection Information, Usage and Log Information, and Cookies. It also holds  information about calls, groups, status, and profile photo too.