Meta, WhatsApp take data privacy fight to Supreme Court
Meta and WhatsApp are taking their legal battle over user data rules to the Supreme Court.
The issue started when India's competition watchdog (CCI) said their 2021 Privacy Policy forced people to share personal info with Meta just to keep using WhatsApp—a move the CCI called an abuse of power.
The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal mostly agreed, hitting them with a ₹213 crore penalty, but the Supreme Court hasn't set a hearing date yet.
What's at stake: user consent and fair play
The CCI originally slapped on a five-year ban for Meta and WhatsApp on sharing users' data, saying the policy was unfair and blocked out competition.
On appeal, the NCLAT kept the penalty but relaxed the ban, making it clear that any data sharing should be based on user consent.
This case is now a big test for how tech giants handle our privacy—and who really gets to decide what happens with our data.