On Tuesday, the Supreme Court criticized WhatsApp and its parent company Meta regarding issues of user data sharing, emphasizing that the right to privacy for citizens should not be sacrificed for technological or business reasons.
“The court informed the tech giant that the right to privacy of the country's citizens cannot be compromised under the guise of data sharing, as reported by PTI.
The highest court also scrutinized Meta's stance on user consent and opt-out procedures. Criticizing the matter firmly, the bench commented that questioning the possibility of opting out is akin to 'a polite method of stealing private information.'
The Supreme Court broadened the case's scope by including the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) as a party to the proceedings and announced that it would issue interim orders on February 9.
The court noted this during the hearing of petitions filed by WhatsApp and its parent company, Meta. These appeals contest a decision by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) that imposed a fine on WhatsApp for its 'take it or leave it' privacy policy, as reported by PTI.
Skillfully designed strategy
At the hearing, the highest court noted that the privacy policies of leading tech firms are "so intricately designed that the public cannot comprehend them," and challenged the fundamental concept of user consent by inquiring, "where is the option to opt-out?"
Emphasizing its strong disapproval, the court remarked, "How can opting out even be considered? This is a sophisticated method of stealing private information," highlighting that such actions cannot be defended as data sharing or user consent.
Case over ‘take it-or-leave it’ nature
The disagreement originates from WhatsApp's 2021 update to its privacy policy, which led to regulatory examination concerning the management and sharing of user data within the Meta group.
In November of the previous year, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) confirmed the Competition Commission of India's (CCI) decision to impose a fine of ₹213.14 crore on WhatsApp and its parent company, Meta, for exploiting their dominant market position via a policy modification.
A panel headed by NCLAT chairperson Justice Ashok Bhushan and technical member Arun Baroka concurred with the CCI's finding that the 2021 update essentially forced users to allow data sharing across Meta's platforms to keep using WhatsApp.
Although the tribunal overturned the CCI's order preventing WhatsApp from sharing user data with Meta and its affiliates for advertising over a five-year period, it confirmed the regulator's conclusions regarding the abuse of dominance.
The tribunal determined that the policy's 'take-it-or-leave-it' approach subjected users to unfair and exploitative conditions, effectively giving them no genuine option other than to agree to data sharing with Meta entities.
The CCI independently recognized the policy alteration, determining that the "broad and unclear" data-sharing terms limited user options and constituted an abuse of WhatsApp's dominant market position.