Are you planning to implement WhatsApp call monitoring in your business? You need to know the relevant laws toconsider to make sure that the implementation is done right. Due to the increasing popularity of this app across the industry spectrum, government bodies are being pushed to pass and implement new laws that would cover the archiving of communications in this channel, whether text messages or voice calls.
The need for WhatsApp call recording has become a key concern of many industries as more and moreemployees are using this app to make phone calls with their colleagues and customers - conversations that are likely to include information that is deemed relevant to the organization and therefore needs to be archived for compliance reasons, among other reasons.
WhatsApp is used in many regulated industries. Recent regulation changes require companies to archive mobile and WhatsApp communication as mandated by FINRA, MiFD, SEC, FOIA, and Public Record regulations.
There are various U.S. laws that mandate the recording of WhatsApp calls, among other electronic content. One of them is the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Laws. SEC implements various laws that require companies under its jurisdiction to archive records that are made by their employees during their business. The SEC Rule 17a-3 and 17a-4, in particular, details that financial services companies should retain records of their marketing materials, audio or visual records, sales scripts, and any electronic or social media records.
In December 2018, SEC released a risk alert that notified U.S. financial advisers as well as their personnel that they are tightening their monitoring efforts to those who use text messaging, instant messaging apps like WhatsApp, and personal emails to communicate with their clients. This risk alert came after the OCIE conducted a limited-scope examination that was designed to get an
understanding of the various forms of electronic messaging that are being used by advisers, the risk of such use, and the challenges in complying with certain recordkeeping provisions of the Advisers Act Rule 204-2.
For more information on the laws that mandate WhatsApp call recording, visit our website at https://www.telemessage.com/
