The Voila app that turns you into a cartoon character is one of the most popular apps in recent times – but is it safe to use?
The Voila artist app is so widespread in use, you can even see beauty shops in London offering it to their clients as a free, fun service. Yes, a cartoon app like Toonme is getting ever more popular.
However, security experts warn you should be wary of any new viral app.
What is the Voila app?
This photo editor app for iOs and Android is one of most popular ways to post cartoon selfies to Instagram and Twitter. If you don’t have Snapchat but want to use Snapchat lenses, Voila app is an alternative to play with selfies.
Just take a selfie and Voila app will offer you the choice of filters. The Voila 3D cartoon filter is the most popular but odds are you saw the Baby 3D and Royalty 3D ones too, especially as part of a collage. There’s also the option to turn a selfie into a Renaissance painting, a beauty painting, a Korean toon and a caricature.
Others love using the Voila app on celebrities thanks to the celeb image search feature. This cartoon app is basically a Disney character filter / generator you can use to “toon” yourself.
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Is Voila app free?
Yes, Voila app is free but inasmuch as all popular apps are free. The Voila app ads are particularly intrusive and annoying, with a common bug that doesn’t let you close them or the X button placed so that it’s almost invisible.
There is also a paid Voila app option that lets you avoid all the ads but it’s a pricy one. In our location, the Voila app price was USD $2 per week, USD $4 per month or USD $22. The last paid Voila tier also came with a free Voila trial so, if you want to see what premium is like, you can try that one.
Just remember to cancel the Voila Pro early plan before the 3 days are up so you don’t get charged for something you don’t use often!
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Is Voila app safe?
So far, the Voila app security has not been called into question, with no data breaches, leaks or hacks being publicized. However, that doesn’t mean it’s safe to use if you care about your data privacy.
The Voila app privacy policy is, for lack of a better word, lax.
One key paragraph from the Voila terms and conditions shows that the Voila app can use your photos at any time, in pretty much any way:
“You hereby grant the Company a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, sublicensable, and transferable license to host, store, use in any way, display, reproduce, modify, adapt, edit, publish, and distribute Uploaded and Generated content. This license is for the limited purpose of operating, developing, providing, and improving the Services, and display Uploaded content in the library for the User’s repeated use.’
For influencers with Voila app intense usage, the next few paragraphs are also concerning.
If you have a decently-sized social media following and would like to monetize the Voila content you make, you need express permission from Weimagine.
“You also grant the Company a perpetual license to create derivative works from, exhibit, broadcast, publicly perform, and publicly display the Generated content in any form and in any and all media or distribution methods.
You acknowledge and agree that we may generate revenues, increase goodwill or otherwise increase our value from your use of the App, including, but not limited to, through the sale of advertising, sponsorships, promotions, usage data.
You further acknowledge that, except as specifically permitted by us in these Terms or in another agreement you enter into with us, you (i) have no right to receive any income or other consideration from any user content or your use of any materials made available to you on or through the App, including in any user content created by you, and (ii) are prohibited from exercising any rights to monetize or obtain consideration from any User Content within the Services or on any third party service.”
If you already used Voila app and want to delete everything you posted, that doesn’t clear you from having the app maker do what they want with your photos.
“You hereby acknowledge that you are entitled to delete any of the Uploaded content from your profile gallery, but it shall not cause revoking of the license granted to the Company,” is another concerning paragraph from the Voila app terms.
Either way, if you plan to download the Voila app anytime soon, be mindful of the selfies you take and photos you upload of yourself and friends. With so many privacy breaches and schemes like the Cambridge Analytica scandal, you should be wary of any viral app you install on your phone.
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