Rakuten Viber's 2026 Policy Changes

At Rakuten Viber, we are committed to making your experience better while prioritizing your privacy and security. As we continue to grow our products and services, including introducing Viber eSIM services, new AI-powered features, and expanded business tools, we are updating our policies to keep pace and ensure they accurately reflect how our platform works for you. These updates are designed to give you clear, up-to-date information about our practices and your choices.

Here are the key changes we’ve made. To review the full policies, visit: www.viber.com/terms

New Viber eSIM Service Specific Terms: We've added dedicated terms for our Viber eSIM service, covering activation, usage, device compatibility, data plan validity, restrictions, and user responsibilities. eSIM is offered on a prepaid, one-time purchase basis for data-only mobile connectivity.

Updated caller identification transparency: We've updated the descriptions relating to the caller identification feature to reflect that incoming calls outside your contact list may be identified to protect users from fraud and spam, also when made through Viber In.

Business account ranking and directory: We've expanded the transparency around how Business Accounts are displayed and ranked on Viber, including the addition of automated business categorization as a ranking parameter, and a disclosure that the Viber business directory may also display larger verified business accounts managed through Viber's partner programs. Automated categorization does not imply Viber's endorsement.

AI features: We've added transparency about newer AI features - such as AI chatbot and AI in-chat assistants - alongside the existing AI chat summary feature and how your data is handled when you use them, to provide you with a clearer picture of how AI is utilized across our Services.

Improved arbitration opt-out instructions: For U.S. residents, we've provided clearer, step-by-step instructions for opting out of the arbitration provision, including how to submit a notice, what information to include, and the deadline for doing so.

Expanded accessibility section: We've updated the section for disabled users with more detailed information about available accessibility features, including compatibility with screen readers and support for system-level accessibility settings, with a link to our accessibility support article.

EEA/UK Contract Summary update: We've updated the contract summary for EEA and UK users, including classifying our services as Number-Independent (NI-ICS) and Number-Based (NB-ICS) Interpersonal Communications Services, and updating complaint and dispute resolution information.

Payments and usage clarity: We've made several smaller clarifications across our Terms, including that app store terms do not apply to Premium Services purchased outside of app stores, that you are responsible for monitoring your Viber Out credit balance and usage (which you can check anytime in the App settings or your account portal), and that third-party technology providers are among the factors that may affect service availability.

We've introduced a standalone Viber Fair Usage Policy that replaces previous fair usage rules and principles. It now covers Viber Out, Viber Business Accounts, and Viber eSIM Services under a single document. The Policy sets out permitted usage standards, prohibited practices (such as fraud, account farming, data scraping, bot usage, and unsolicited messaging), service-specific restrictions, and enforcement measures. It is incorporated into the Viber Terms of Service and the Business Accounts Terms and Conditions.

Updated Prohibited Products and Services List: We've updated and expanded the Prohibited Products and Services List into a standalone, comprehensive document that clarifies the products and services that may not be offered, sold, or promoted through Business Accounts on the platform. The Business Accounts Terms now include an explicit obligation to comply with this list.

Philippines Business Accounts Terms: The Philippines-specific terms, previously included at the bottom of the general Business Accounts Terms, have been moved into a separate, standalone document accessible via a link from the main Business Accounts Terms, for easier navigation.

Business Account Ranking Transparency: We've provided additional details on how Business Accounts are displayed and ordered in Viber's business directory. Business categorization, including categories automatically determined or refined by Viber based on your Business Account name, description, content, or products displayed, is now listed as a ranking parameter. Automated categorization does not imply Viber's endorsement of a Business Account or its offerings.

Unified ID 2.0 (UID2) Participation: We now participate in the Unified ID 2.0 advertising framework operated by The Trade Desk. As part of this framework, your phone number may be converted into a hashed, encrypted identifier used to deliver more relevant advertisements without sharing your phone number directly with advertisers. You can opt out of UID2-based targeted advertising at any time by visiting The Trade Desk's Transparency Portal athttps://www.transparentadvertising.com/.

Updated tracking partners and cookies list: We've updated the tables of third-party tracking technologies used on Rakuten Viber and cookies lists used by our websites.

More transparency on ad personalization: We've provided more detail about the types of information used to personalize ads, including data from specific Viber services (such as business accounts or dating profiles, excluding sensitive data), voluntarily provided interests, and how we infer your interests based on your activity inside Viber.

eSIM data collection: We've added transparency about the data we collect and receive from third-party network providers for eSIM services, including eSIM identifiers, data consumption information, and network location data.

AI features and sensitive data: We've clarified that when you use AI features (such as chat summaries, polish messages, instant answers, or AI chatbot assistants), we process your messages to deliver the relevant responses. This may include sensitive information if you choose to provide it, and AI chatbot communications may be retained for safety purposes.

Updated caller identification disclosures: We've updated our caller identification disclosures to reflect its expanded use for the Viber In feature and to indicate spam probability for numbers marked as spam by other users.

Enhanced transparency on inferred data: We've provided more detail about how we infer your interests, including from your interactions with dating profiles, other Viber services and features, and public content, and added an example of inferences we may draw.

Improved data erasure options: We've clarified the different ways you can exercise your right to erasure, including deleting specific service profiles (such as your Dating profile or Business Account) without deactivating your main Viber account. We've also added links to Help Center articles explaining what is and isn't deleted through each method.

User feedback and communications: We've clarified that feedback, ideas, suggestions, or other communications you submit through our Services may be collected and used for improving our Services.

B2B data processing: We've expanded our disclosures around the processing of business partner data, including email addresses used for accessing Viber business features and APIs, login data for internal resources, and analytics to improve our business service offering. For Business Accounts (SMBs), we’ve clarified that users can optionally connect Google Business Profiles to import read-only profile data and noted our use of third-party APIs to support certain App functions, including location-based features.

Children's privacy: We've reinforced that certain features, such as business accounts and dating services, are strictly limited to users over the age of 18, and that we may request additional data to validate eligibility.

Updated data collection and use disclosures: We've made clarifications to the activity data section, to reflect the updates to our Services, clarified that interests you voluntarily provide are a distinct data category, and noted that measurement data (alongside activity data) may be retained on a non-identifiable basis after account deletion for service improvement and analytics.

Clarified service provider descriptions: We've expanded the descriptions of our service provider categories, including network and telecommunication partners and AI service providers, to give you a clearer picture of the roles they play in supporting our Services.

Additional language and transparency improvements: We've made further minor updates across the Privacy Policy, including a general statement on our lawful basis for processing personal data, refined descriptions of our services and features, added disclosure that quality indicators and tags assigned by Rakuten Viber to business accounts or dating profiles may be visible to other users, and other language adjustments to better reflect how our platform works today.

If you are in the EEA and the UK, here are the key updates on top of our general Privacy Policy updates mentioned above and mirrored in the EEA/UK notice:

eSIM in legal basis table: We've added Viber eSIM as a listed Premium Service in the legal basis table and disclosed that eSIM data is processed under performance of contract.

AI features and Special Categories of Data: We've clarified that your use of AI features may involve information that could qualify as Special Categories of Personal Data under the GDPR, if you choose to provide it.

Updated data use and legal basis table: We've updated the table to reflect eSIM data processing, expanded descriptions of AI service providers and network / telecommunication partners, and updated the B2B section (renamed from "Engagements" to "Services") with more detail on the processing of business partner data.

If you are in the US, here are the key updates on top of our general Privacy Policy updates:

Consolidated U.S. Notice: We've merged the California-specific CCPA Notice into the United States Regional Privacy Notice, creating a single, comprehensive notice for all U.S. residents, including California. The consolidated notice supersedes both the prior CCPA Notice and the prior U.S. Notice, and carries forward all existing California disclosures.

Enhanced disclosures for all U.S. residents: The consolidated notice now provides all U.S. residents with the same level of detail previously available only to California residents, including CCPA-format category tables for data collected, sources, and data sold or shared, as well as detailed data retention criteria, and expanded guidance on how to exercise privacy rights directly through the Viber App settings. We've also harmonized terminology throughout to align with CCPA definitions.

As we implement these changes, we remain dedicated to ensuring your Viber experience is safe, secure, and enjoyable. If you have any questions or need more information, please refer to our updated policies or contact our Support team. Thank you for your trust in us and for being a valued member of the Viber community!