The Supreme Court on Tuesday came down heavily on Meta Platforms and WhatsApp LLC over their privacy policy, stating the tech giants will not be allowed to exploit the personal data of Indian citizens.
Expressing serious concern about their practices, the top court dubbed them a “mockery of constitutionalism”.
“We will not allow you to share a single piece of information. You can’t play with the right to privacy in this country,” a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said, as per ANI news agency. The bench also comprised Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul Pancholi.
The court made the remarks while hearing a batch of appeals filed by Meta Platforms and WhatsApp LLC challenging a judgment of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) that had upheld the Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) order imposing a Rs 213.14 crore penalty on Meta for WhatsApp’s 2021 “take it or leave it” privacy policy.
The court also heard a separate appeal filed by the CCI challenging one of the NCLAT findings that there was no abuse of dominance by the two companies, and its move to allow them to share users’ data for advertising purposes.
The Supreme Court questioned the validity of consent, stating users were effectively forced to accept the privacy policy on a “take it or leave it” basis.
Justice Joymalya Bagchi pointed out that the companies’ practices amounted to obtaining “manufactured consent” from users.
“You are making a mockery of the constitutionalism of this country. We will dismiss it right away. How can you play with the right to privacy of people like this? Consumer has no choice, you have created a monopoly,” the CJI said, as per the LiveLaw website.
Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, during the hearing, said the personal data is not only sold, but also commercially exploited.
Justice Bagchi said the Court would like to look into how WhatsApp “rented out” the data.
“Every silo of data, irrespective of privacy, has a value, we would like to examine, what is the rent sharing of data…we are concerned about how our behaviour is utlitsed and monetised for trends. You are using the data for the purpose of targeted online advertising,” Justice Bagchi reportedly said.
The court has adjourned the matter till February 9, granting Meta and WhatsApp time to file affidavits.