WhatsApp privacy policy: Delhi HC asks govt to respond to petition
The Delhi High Court has asked the government to respond to a plea against instant messaging service WhatsApp after it decided to share data with its parent company Facebook.
Several media reports said that the ruling came after a petition was filed by Karmanya Singh Sareen and Shreya Sethi against WhastApp, Facebook Inc and Facebook India Online PVT Ltd for the new privacy policy. The concerned citizens alleged that the new policy “compromises the rights of users.”
The notice to the centre to examine the issue was issued by a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra. The concerned authorities have been asked to file their reply by September 14.
The petition alleged that WhatsApp’s new privacy policy is in stark contrast to their actual policy since the time of its inception and the revised policy ‘severely compromises’ the rights of its users and makes them vulnerable.
WhatsApp had on August 25 announced that it would start sharing user’s account information with its parent company Facebook, indicating a significant shift in its ‘strict’ privacy stance.
The new policy is likely to come into effect from September 25 but it is not necessary for users to agree to the new policy.
Representing the petitioners, senior advocates Sandeep Sethi and Pratibha M Singh informed the Delhi High Court that the change in policy is a “very serious breach of policy.”
The petition doesn’t really make any sense as WhatsApp has given an option to opt out of the new policy, it has clearly mentioned that the new policy doesn’t harm privacy in any way and only attempts to enhance user experience with better targeted ads and friend suggestions on Facebook’s platform.
