<s>
Whisper	B-Application
is	O
a	O
proprietary	B-Application
Android	B-Application
mobile	I-Application
app	O
(	O
formerly	O
available	O
on	O
iOS	B-Application
)	O
available	O
without	O
charge	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
a	O
form	O
of	O
anonymous	O
social	O
media	O
,	O
allowing	O
users	O
to	O
post	O
and	O
share	O
photo	O
and	O
video	O
messages	O
anonymously	O
,	O
although	O
this	O
claim	O
has	O
been	O
challenged	O
with	O
privacy	O
concerns	O
over	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
handling	O
of	O
user	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
postings	O
,	O
called	O
"	O
whispers	B-Application
"	O
,	O
consist	O
of	O
text	O
superimposed	O
over	O
an	O
image	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
background	O
imagery	O
is	O
either	O
automatically	O
retrieved	O
from	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
search	O
engine	O
or	O
uploaded	O
by	O
the	O
user	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
app	O
,	O
launched	O
in	O
March	O
2012	O
,	O
is	O
the	O
main	O
product	O
of	O
the	O
media	O
company	O
WhisperText	B-Application
LLC	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
co-founded	O
by	O
CEO	O
Michael	O
Heyward	O
,	O
the	O
son	O
of	O
the	O
entertainment	O
executive	O
Andy	O
Heyward	O
,	O
and	O
Brad	O
Brooks	O
,	O
who	O
is	O
the	O
CEO	O
of	O
mobile	O
messaging	O
service	O
TigerText	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
TechCrunch	O
,	O
as	O
of	O
March	O
2017	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
has	O
a	O
total	O
of	O
17	O
billion	O
monthly	O
pageviews	O
on	O
its	O
mobile	O
and	O
desktop	O
websites	O
,	O
social	O
channels	O
and	O
publisher	O
network	O
,	O
with	O
250	O
million	O
monthly	O
users	O
across	O
187	O
countries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
2022	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
was	O
removed	O
from	O
the	O
Apple	B-Application
App	I-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
but	O
continues	O
to	O
be	O
available	O
in	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
2015	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
reached	O
10	O
million	O
monthly	O
active	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
early	O
November	O
2013	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
was	O
reported	O
to	O
have	O
reached	O
2.5	O
billion	O
monthly	O
page	O
views	O
and	O
nearly	O
3	O
billion	O
page	O
views	O
in	O
December	O
2013	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
has	O
10	O
billion	O
monthly	O
page	O
views	O
as	O
of	O
Spring	O
2015	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2015	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
reported	O
that	O
Whisper	B-Application
had	O
reached	O
20	O
million	O
active	O
users	O
,	O
double	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
users	O
it	O
had	O
six	O
months	O
earlier	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
2016	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
reported	O
that	O
Whisper	B-Application
had	O
reached	O
over	O
30	O
million	O
monthly	O
active	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
terms	O
of	O
demographics	O
,	O
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
named	O
Whisper	B-Application
in	O
September	O
2015	O
as	O
a	O
social	O
media	O
platform	O
of	O
choice	O
for	O
Generation	O
Z	O
in	O
an	O
article	O
about	O
Internet	O
habits	O
among	O
Generation	O
Z	O
and	O
Millennials	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
June	O
2017	O
,	O
75%	O
of	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
usership	O
was	O
between	O
the	O
ages	O
of	O
18	O
and	O
34	O
,	O
and	O
predominantly	O
female	O
,	O
as	O
reported	O
by	O
Fast	O
Company	O
magazine	O
,	O
which	O
also	O
added	O
that	O
:	O
"	O
According	O
to	O
CrowdTangle	O
data	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
Facebook	B-Application
page	O
was	O
the	O
top-performing	O
media	O
fan	O
page	O
for	O
interactions	O
on	O
the	O
social	O
network	O
with	O
approximately	O
200	O
million	O
interactions	O
in	O
fiscal	O
year	O
2016	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
these	O
metrics	O
are	O
correct	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
outperformed	O
CNN	B-Architecture
,	O
Vice	O
,	O
and	O
BuzzFeed	O
on	O
Facebook	B-Application
for	O
interactions.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
CBS	O
New	O
York	O
describes	O
Whisper	B-Application
as	O
"	O
the	O
place	O
to	O
go	O
these	O
days	O
to	O
vent	O
,	O
come	O
clean	O
,	O
or	O
peer	O
into	O
other	O
people	O
's	O
secrets	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
the	O
goal	O
is	O
that	O
of	O
"	O
turning	O
confessions	O
into	O
content	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
2015	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
announced	O
a	O
partnership	O
with	O
the	O
Ad	O
Council	O
on	O
the	O
"	O
I	O
Am	O
A	O
Witness	O
"	O
anti-bullying	O
campaign	O
,	O
along	O
with	O
other	O
tech	O
companies	O
,	O
including	O
Facebook	B-Application
,	O
Twitter	B-Application
,	O
and	O
Snapchat	B-Application
,	O
and	O
in	O
March	O
2016	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
announced	O
a	O
partnership	O
with	O
the	O
Anti-Defamation	O
League	O
's	O
Best	O
Practices	O
for	O
Responding	O
to	O
Online	O
Hate	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
premise	O
behind	O
the	O
service	O
was	O
to	O
counter	O
the	O
"	O
best	O
possible	O
self	O
"	O
ego-driven	O
self-aggrandizing	O
"	O
vanity	O
"	O
posting	O
done	O
on	O
Facebook	B-Application
,	O
and	O
as	O
an	O
antidote	O
to	O
the	O
phenomenon	O
of	O
"	O
oversharing	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
too	O
much	O
information	O
"	O
that	O
young	O
users	O
engage	O
in	O
online	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Business	O
Insider	O
,	O
Forbes	O
,	O
and	O
The	O
Daily	O
Dot	O
have	O
called	O
it	O
"	O
the	O
anti-Facebook	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
Forbes	O
Tech	O
drew	O
a	O
contrast	O
in	O
stating	O
that	O
,	O
"	O
Whisper	B-Application
,	O
even	O
more	O
than	O
Snapchat	B-Application
,	O
is	O
the	O
anti-Facebook.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
digital-news	O
website	O
SMU	O
SMC	O
summed	O
up	O
all	O
these	O
points	O
together	O
:	O
"	O
In	O
addition	O
to	O
preventing	O
cyber	O
bullies	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
gives	O
users	O
the	O
opportunity	O
to	O
confess	O
to	O
things	O
that	O
could	O
potentially	O
ruin	O
marriages	O
,	O
friendships	O
or	O
result	O
in	O
loss	O
of	O
job	O
,	O
without	O
suffering	O
consequences	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
has	O
also	O
been	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
platform	O
for	O
citizen	O
journalism	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2014	O
,	O
amid	O
widespread	O
violence	O
and	O
unrest	O
in	O
Iraq	O
and	O
the	O
Iraqi	O
government	O
's	O
blocking	O
of	O
Twitter	B-Application
,	O
Facebook	B-Application
,	O
and	O
YouTube	O
,	O
many	O
Iraqis	O
downloaded	O
and	O
used	O
Whisper	B-Application
as	O
a	O
means	O
of	O
acting	O
as	O
real-time	O
reporters	O
,	O
posting	O
news	O
and	O
updates	O
hours	O
before	O
the	O
mainstream	O
media	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
sharing	O
political	O
views	O
and	O
personal	O
thoughts	O
and	O
feelings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
the	O
analytics	O
firm	O
SensorTower	O
,	O
app	O
downloads	O
rose	O
during	O
2021	O
as	O
a	O
large	O
number	O
of	O
social	O
media	O
users	O
,	O
mostly	O
on	O
Instagram	B-Application
,	O
started	O
using	O
Whisper	B-Application
to	O
create	O
meme	O
images	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
article	O
"	O
Text	O
Memes	O
Are	O
Taking	O
Over	O
Instagram	B-Application
"	O
,	O
Taylor	O
Lorenz	O
wrote	O
:	O
"	O
Confessional	O
,	O
overly	O
personal	O
messages	O
paired	O
with	O
seemingly	O
unrelated	O
images	O
allowed	O
for	O
an	O
extra	O
layer	O
of	O
humor	O
and	O
irony.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Development	O
of	O
the	O
system	O
was	O
outsourced	O
to	O
Inaka	O
,	O
a	O
web	O
and	O
mobile	B-Application
app	I-Application
development	O
consultancy	O
based	O
in	O
Seattle	O
,	O
Washington	O
and	O
Buenos	O
Aires	O
,	O
Argentina	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
original	O
system	O
back	O
end	O
used	O
the	O
Riak	B-General_Concept
NoSQL	B-General_Concept
database	O
,	O
but	O
after	O
performance	O
problems	O
with	O
Riak	B-General_Concept
the	O
system	O
was	O
converted	O
to	O
use	O
MySQL	B-Application
and	O
Apache	B-Application
Cassandra	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
2013	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
has	O
brought	O
its	O
technology	O
team	O
in-house	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
now	O
has	O
25	O
engineers	O
in	O
Venice	O
,	O
CA	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2016	O
,	O
Fast	O
Company	O
reported	O
that	O
Whisper	B-Application
had	O
recently	O
begun	O
to	O
use	O
deep	B-Algorithm
learning	I-Algorithm
to	O
build	O
a	O
content	O
moderation	O
tool	O
,	O
internally	O
dubbed	O
the	O
Arbiter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
article	O
stated	O
that	O
the	O
Arbiter	O
runs	O
on	O
a	O
PC	O
with	O
128GB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
and	O
four	O
Nvidia	O
GeForce	O
Titan	O
X	O
graphics	B-Device
cards	I-Device
,	O
each	O
of	O
which	O
has	O
a	O
graphics	B-Architecture
processing	I-Architecture
unit	I-Architecture
with	O
3072	O
computing	O
cores	O
and	O
12GB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Those	O
GPUs	B-Architecture
enable	O
it	O
to	O
perform	O
artificial	B-Application
intelligence	I-Application
and	O
use	O
neural	B-Algorithm
network	I-Algorithm
technology	I-Algorithm
to	O
assess	O
incoming	O
whispers	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
article	O
noted	O
that	O
because	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
Arbiter	O
has	O
knowledge	O
to	O
"	O
reflect	O
both	O
the	O
real	O
things	O
that	O
millions	O
of	O
Whisper	B-Application
users	O
have	O
said	O
and	O
how	O
moderators	O
handled	O
them	O
,	O
its	O
understanding	O
of	O
language	O
can	O
be	O
remarkably	O
subtle.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
the	O
Los	O
Angeles	O
Times	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
is	O
also	O
using	O
AI	B-Application
technology	O
to	O
create	O
content	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
That	O
system	O
,	O
the	O
Times	O
reports	O
,	O
"	O
allows	O
Whisper	B-Application
to	O
gather	O
related	O
posts	O
about	O
issues	O
at	O
work	O
,	O
school	O
or	O
in	O
relationships	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Then	O
,	O
it	O
organizes	O
them	O
,	O
adds	O
context	O
and	O
even	O
writes	O
a	O
headline	O
...	O
With	O
the	O
AI	B-Application
's	O
help	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
hopes	O
to	O
produce	O
more	O
content	O
than	O
humans	O
alone	O
could	O
—	O
which	O
in	O
turn	O
could	O
mean	O
more	O
readership	O
and	O
ad	O
revenue.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2017	O
,	O
TechCrunch	O
reported	O
that	O
Whisper	B-Application
launched	O
a	O
tool	O
for	O
publishers	O
called	O
"	O
Perspectives	O
"	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
a	O
video	B-Application
widget	I-Application
that	O
publishers	O
,	O
primarily	O
news	O
websites	O
,	O
can	O
embed	O
within	O
articles	O
to	O
feature	O
Whisper	B-Application
content	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
videos	O
consist	O
of	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
Whispers	B-Application
set	O
against	O
relevant	O
video	O
clips	O
and	O
instrumental	O
background	O
music	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
selection	O
of	O
Whispers	B-Application
to	O
include	O
in	O
a	O
Perspectives	O
video	O
story	O
is	O
done	O
by	O
an	O
in-house	O
proprietary	B-Application
AI	B-Application
program	O
called	O
"	O
Eliot	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
AI	B-Application
engine	O
then	O
generates	O
a	O
contextually	O
relevant	O
story	O
or	O
video.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
,	O
WhisperText	B-Application
LLC	O
,	O
is	O
led	O
by	O
CEO	O
Michael	O
Heyward	O
,	O
is	O
based	O
in	O
the	O
Venice	O
tech	O
hub	O
of	O
Los	O
Angeles	O
,	O
California	O
,	O
now	O
known	O
as	O
"	O
Silicon	O
Beach	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
company	O
has	O
offices	O
in	O
New	O
York	O
City	O
as	O
well	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
WhisperText	B-Application
LLC	O
received	O
its	O
first	O
round	O
of	O
venture-capital	O
funding	O
from	O
Lightspeed	O
Venture	O
Partners	O
for	O
$3	O
million	O
in	O
April	O
2013	O
,	O
and	O
then	O
a	O
second	O
round	O
of	O
funding	O
from	O
Sequoia	O
Capital	O
,	O
Trinity	O
Capital	O
,	O
Krum	O
Capital	O
,	O
and	O
Lightspeed	O
for	O
$21	O
million	O
in	O
September	O
2013	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
PitchBook	O
,	O
an	O
independent	O
private	O
equity	O
and	O
venture	O
capital	O
research	O
firm	O
,	O
forecasted	O
in	O
November	O
2013	O
that	O
Whisper	B-Application
is	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
likeliest	O
social	O
platform	O
IPOs	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
pre-money	O
valuation	O
of	O
$85	O
million	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Om	O
Malik	O
,	O
Founder	O
and	O
Senior	O
Writer	O
of	O
GigaOM	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
was	O
already	O
,	O
as	O
of	O
July	O
2013	O
,	O
valued	O
at	O
$100	O
million	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2014	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
confirmed	O
that	O
it	O
raised	O
an	O
additional	O
$36	O
million	O
in	O
venture	O
funding	O
from	O
Shasta	O
Ventures	O
,	O
Sequoia	O
Capital	O
,	O
Thrive	O
Capital	O
,	O
and	O
Lightspeed	O
Ventures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
has	O
raised	O
$61	O
million	O
in	O
total	O
venture	O
capital	O
funding	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
has	O
two	O
parts	O
to	O
its	O
advertising	O
business	O
:	O
direct	O
sales	O
for	O
advertising	O
clients	O
,	O
and	O
programmatic	O
ads	O
that	O
show	O
up	O
on	O
a	O
user	O
's	O
phone	O
when	O
they	O
use	O
the	O
Whisper	B-Application
app	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
has	O
experimented	O
with	O
advertising	O
by	O
working	O
with	O
Fox	O
Studios	O
,	O
MTV	O
,	O
Universal	B-Application
,	O
Hulu	B-Application
and	O
FX	O
on	O
customized	O
branded	O
campaigns	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
2015	O
,	O
Adweek	O
revealed	O
that	O
Coca-Cola	O
was	O
using	O
Whisper	B-Application
to	O
market	O
its	O
#makeithappy	O
anti-cyberbullying	O
campaign	O
to	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
late	O
2015	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
embarked	O
on	O
an	O
advertising	O
partnership	O
with	O
Disney	O
and	O
Pixar	O
,	O
starting	O
with	O
the	O
promotion	O
of	O
the	O
3D	O
animated	O
movie	O
The	O
Good	O
Dinosaur	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2016	O
,	O
Mashable	O
and	O
Teen	O
Vogue	O
announced	O
that	O
Whisper	B-Application
had	O
partnered	O
with	O
Giphy	B-Algorithm
to	O
allow	O
GIFs	O
in	O
the	O
chat	B-Protocol
section	O
of	O
its	O
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
2016	O
,	O
the	O
app	O
launched	O
Whisper	B-Application
Polls	O
,	O
whereby	O
brands	O
can	O
question	O
potential	O
consumers	O
,	O
the	O
users	O
,	O
about	O
various	O
types	O
of	O
opinions	O
,	O
preferences	O
,	O
and	O
interests	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
April	O
13	O
,	O
2016	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
was	O
featured	O
in	O
a	O
discussion	O
on	O
The	O
Howard	O
Stern	O
Show	O
,	O
where	O
Howard	O
and	O
co-host	O
Robin	O
talked	O
about	O
confessions	O
from	O
men	O
who	O
were	O
victims	O
of	O
domestic	O
violence	O
at	O
the	O
hands	O
of	O
their	O
own	O
wives	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2016	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
also	O
announced	O
the	O
launch	O
of	O
the	O
Spanish-language	O
version	O
of	O
its	O
app	O
on	O
both	O
iOS	B-Application
and	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
,	O
with	O
an	O
initial	O
launch	O
in	O
Mexico	O
,	O
and	O
in	O
March	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
partnered	O
with	O
the	O
It	O
Gets	O
Better	O
Project	O
in	O
Mexico	O
(	O
Todo	O
Mejora	O
México	O
)	O
on	O
a	O
campaign	O
to	O
empower	O
LGBTQ	O
voices	O
in	O
Mexico	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2016	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
they	O
would	O
be	O
introducing	O
video	O
ads	O
,	O
and	O
started	O
on	O
July	O
3	O
with	O
a	O
partnership	O
with	O
Universal	B-Application
Studios	I-Application
 '	O
to	O
promote	O
the	O
movie	O
The	O
Secret	B-Application
Life	O
of	O
Pets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
said	O
that	O
it	O
would	O
share	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
posts	O
on	O
its	O
Facebook	B-Application
page	O
,	O
which	O
reportedly	O
reached	O
more	O
than	O
200	O
million	O
people	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2016	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
also	O
added	O
a	O
"	O
Groups	O
"	O
function	O
,	O
which	O
allows	O
users	O
to	O
curate	O
Whispers	B-Application
under	O
different	O
topics	O
,	O
and	O
to	O
connect	O
with	O
other	O
users	O
who	O
have	O
shared	O
interests	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2017	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
announced	O
its	O
partnership	O
with	O
HBO	O
to	O
promote	O
the	O
TV	O
series	O
Big	O
Little	O
Lies	O
,	O
and	O
also	O
embarked	O
on	O
promotional	O
partnerships	O
with	O
Dove	O
soap	O
and	O
Universal	B-Application
Music	O
Group	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2017	O
,	O
MTV	O
partnered	O
with	O
Whisper	B-Application
to	O
promote	O
the	O
2017	O
MTV	O
Movie	O
&	O
TV	O
Awards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
That	O
same	O
month	O
,	O
the	O
Tronc	O
media	O
company	O
,	O
which	O
publishes	O
the	O
Los	O
Angeles	O
Times	O
and	O
Chicago	O
Tribune	O
,	O
began	O
using	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
content	O
widget	O
on	O
its	O
websites	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Whisper	B-Application
app	I-Application
has	O
been	O
criticized	O
for	O
requiring	O
access	O
to	O
smartphone	B-Application
features	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
camera	O
and	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
contact	O
list	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
disclosed	O
when	O
the	O
app	O
is	O
downloaded	O
on	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
platform	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2015	O
,	O
a	O
15-year-old	O
girl	O
from	O
Bolton	O
,	O
Massachusetts	O
was	O
charged	O
with	O
making	O
a	O
threat	O
on	O
Whisper	B-Application
towards	O
a	O
school	O
,	O
referencing	O
the	O
Columbine	O
shootings	O
;	O
she	O
was	O
tracked	O
down	O
using	O
Whisper	B-Application
and	O
GPS	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
July	O
2018	O
,	O
a	O
31-year-old	O
man	O
from	O
Toronto	O
,	O
Ontario	O
,	O
Canada	O
allegedly	O
met	O
a	O
15-year-old	O
girl	O
using	O
Whisper	B-Application
and	O
was	O
charged	O
with	O
luring	O
a	O
child	O
,	O
two	O
counts	O
of	O
sexual	O
assault	O
and	O
other	O
charges	O
,	O
including	O
possession	O
of	O
child	O
pornography	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Electronic	O
Frontier	O
Foundation	O
's	O
attorney	O
Hanni	O
Fakhoury	O
commented	O
in	O
early	O
2014	O
that	O
while	O
Whisper	B-Application
may	O
have	O
no	O
legal	O
choice	O
in	O
the	O
matter	O
,	O
"	O
it	O
's	O
the	O
doublespeak	O
that	O
's	O
problematic.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
retains	O
every	O
user	O
's	O
posts	O
indefinitely	O
in	O
a	O
central	O
database	O
(	O
including	O
"	O
deleted	O
"	O
posts	O
)	O
,	O
together	O
with	O
each	O
post	O
's	O
timestamp	O
and	O
approximate	O
geolocation	O
,	O
even	O
if	O
the	O
user	O
has	O
opted	O
out	O
of	O
geolocation	O
;	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
allegedly	O
stores	O
or	O
processes	O
user	O
information	O
outside	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
despite	O
having	O
told	O
its	O
users	O
that	O
"	O
we	O
process	O
and	O
store	O
all	O
information	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
has	O
said	O
that	O
while	O
it	O
does	O
use	O
an	O
outsourcing	O
firm	O
for	O
content	O
moderation	O
based	O
in	O
the	O
Philippines	O
,	O
no	O
data	O
is	O
stored	O
outside	O
the	O
US	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
allegedly	O
provides	O
data	O
it	O
gathers	O
(	O
including	O
geolocation	O
data	O
)	O
to	O
the	O
FBI	O
,	O
and	O
MI5	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
participated	O
in	O
a	O
DOD	O
project	O
about	O
suicide	O
prevention	O
by	O
sharing	O
aggregate	O
mentions	O
of	O
certain	O
words	O
on	O
military	O
bases	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
disputed	O
nearly	O
all	O
the	O
Guardian	O
allegations	O
and	O
made	O
a	O
point-by-point	O
response	O
to	O
the	O
Guardian	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
reading	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
response	O
,	O
Twitter	B-Application
's	O
former	O
security	O
head	O
Moxie	O
Marlinspike	O
commented	O
on	O
Hacker	B-Application
News	I-Application
that	O
Whisper	B-Application
"	O
should	O
never	O
have	O
claimed	O
to	O
provide	O
anonymity	O
if	O
it	O
had	O
to	O
track	O
users	O
to	O
make	O
the	O
app	O
function	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
pointed	O
out	O
that	O
there	O
are	O
many	O
"	O
hard	O
problems	O
"	O
that	O
need	O
to	O
be	O
solved	O
before	O
a	O
service	O
can	O
claim	O
to	O
provide	O
truly	O
unlinkable	O
anonymity	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
"	O
there	O
are	O
projects	O
like	O
Tor	B-Application
that	O
are	O
approaching	O
these	O
types	O
of	O
problems	O
seriously	O
,	O
but	O
apps	O
like	O
Whisper	B-Application
or	O
Secret	B-Application
end	O
up	O
poisoning	O
the	O
well	O
and	O
confusing	O
users	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Marlinspike	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
was	O
claiming	O
that	O
they	O
could	O
not	O
track	O
their	O
users	O
,	O
when	O
instead	O
they	O
were	O
"	O
squarely	O
in	O
the	O
[	O
would	O
not ]	O
category	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Senator	O
Jay	O
Rockefeller	O
asked	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
CEO	O
to	O
appear	O
before	O
him	O
and	O
the	O
staff	O
of	O
the	O
Senate	O
Committee	O
on	O
Commerce	O
,	O
Science	O
,	O
and	O
Transportation	O
to	O
explain	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
tracking	O
systems	O
,	O
tracking	O
data	O
retention	O
,	O
and	O
data	O
distribution	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
BuzzFeed	O
,	O
the	O
Huffington	O
Post	O
and	O
Fusion	O
(	O
TV	O
channel	O
)	O
suspended	O
their	O
partnerships	O
with	O
Whisper	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2015	O
,	O
The	O
Guardian	O
published	O
a	O
clarification	O
of	O
the	O
October	O
2014	O
piece	O
in	O
which	O
it	O
had	O
made	O
numerous	O
allegations	O
about	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
privacy	O
protection	O
and	O
metadata	O
policy	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Guardian	O
clarified	O
the	O
claims	O
regarding	O
user	O
location	O
,	O
data	O
storage	O
,	O
changes	O
to	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
terms	O
of	O
service	O
and	O
security	O
policy	O
and	O
the	O
sharing	O
of	O
user	O
data	O
with	O
the	O
US	O
Department	O
of	O
Defense	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
also	O
removed	O
an	O
opinion	O
piece	O
titled	O
"	O
Think	O
you	O
can	O
Whisper	B-Application
privately	O
?	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
retraction	O
was	O
covered	O
by	O
several	O
news	O
outlets	O
,	O
including	O
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
,	O
CNN	B-Architecture
Money	O
,	O
TechCrunch	O
,	O
and	O
Mashable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
March	O
22	O
,	O
2015	O
,	O
a	O
security	O
startup	O
called	O
Xipiter	O
published	O
a	O
report	O
in	O
which	O
they	O
outlined	O
serious	O
security	O
concerns	O
and	O
the	O
resistance	O
they	O
met	O
when	O
trying	O
to	O
bring	O
these	O
concerns	O
to	O
the	O
attention	O
of	O
Whisper.sh	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
,	O
Whisper	B-Application
's	O
co-founder	O
Michael	O
Heyward	O
and	O
its	O
CTO	O
Chad	O
DePue	O
claimed	O
that	O
it	O
is	O
not	O
possible	O
to	O
do	O
such	O
things	O
with	O
their	O
app	O
and	O
accused	O
Xipiter	O
of	O
fabricating	O
their	O
proof-of-concept	O
video	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whisper	B-Application
Text	I-Application
LLC	O
claims	O
to	O
have	O
set	O
up	O
a	O
companion	O
nonprofit	O
for	O
its	O
users	O
called	O
Your	O
Voice	O
,	O
which	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
its	O
website	O
,	O
is	O
"	O
dedicated	O
to	O
raising	O
awareness	O
about	O
mental	O
health	O
issues	O
on	O
college	O
campuses	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
