Many people here are afraid of being able to install apps on iOS from somewhere else than the Apple store because then Facebook will be able to be fully evil on iOS.
A relationship without trust and with fear of evil actions is called a toxic relationship. If you don't trust Facebook, don't install it. Even from the app store. There is no world in which you need the app.
First, if you use Facebook because of the network effect, don't stay passive. Advocate for using something else, like Signal, mastodon, anything.
Second (in the meantime), if you still need Facebook, I'm sure you can access it from a browser in private mode.
Get out of this toxic relationship now.
Get your news and your fun from somewhere else not amenable to a filter that suits a manipulative company.
We should be happy for such new possibilities. Of course it requires putting your time and money where your mouth is. But it's worth doing either way! Stop the dissonance!
I have resisted installing it from the start. Of course I felt some pressure about this.
People never built the expectation I had WhatsApp. I never stopped advocating against it (in a nice way, without blaming people).
Now, more and more people have been installing Signal and now I can have group discussions again.
We are many who don't like Facebook. If enough of us resist, WhatsApp will stop being so pervasive and "mandatory".
It has happened in my social circles. There's no drawback anymore for me to not having WhatsApp. When there was, I still had a fulfilling social life, with as many friends, or even more, than average. I was still invited to events, I was still able to organize events, etc.
If people like you, they'll reach you. Having WhatsApp is just convenient, not a determining factor.
Most people now understand that privacy is an important topic and will cope with you not having WhatsApp, or even embrace your action.
The world needs you to become better. Of course it's not easy. But it's not inevitable.
Again, WhatsApp might (still) be mandatory to you today. Okay! You are stuck with it for now. Fine. I understand. But do something about it! Advocate for something else! You can do it gently without pissing people off (which would be the best way to fail convincing them anyway)
If nobody does anything about it, we are stuck with Meta.
A relationship without trust and with fear of evil actions is called a toxic relationship. If you don't trust Facebook, don't install it. Even from the app store. There is no world in which you need the app.
First, if you use Facebook because of the network effect, don't stay passive. Advocate for using something else, like Signal, mastodon, anything.
Second (in the meantime), if you still need Facebook, I'm sure you can access it from a browser in private mode.
Get out of this toxic relationship now.
Get your news and your fun from somewhere else not amenable to a filter that suits a manipulative company.
We should be happy for such new possibilities. Of course it requires putting your time and money where your mouth is. But it's worth doing either way! Stop the dissonance!