Supreme Court Confronts Meta and WhatsApp Over Privacy Breach

The Supreme Court criticized Meta and WhatsApp for their privacy policy breaches, emphasizing citizens' right to privacy. The court is set to deliver an interim order and has included the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology in the case. Meta and WhatsApp appealed against a CCI penalty for dominance abuse.

The Supreme Court, on Tuesday, issued stern warnings to Meta Platforms Inc and WhatsApp during hearings on their appeals against a hefty Rs 213.14 crore penalty. This penalty, imposed by the Competition Commission of India, challenges their contentious privacy policies.

Chief Justice Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi, insisted that tech giants cannot compromise the right to privacy of Indian citizens under the guise of data sharing. With an interim order expected on February 9, the bench emphasized that sharing even a 'single word' of private data would not be tolerated.

The court highlighted the 'cleverly crafted' privacy terms, which are beyond the comprehension of common individuals, equating this to a 'decent way of committing theft of private information'. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology is now a party to these proceedings.

(With inputs from agencies.)