WhatsApp's updated privacy policy has sparked controversy in India, its largest market with 400 million users. The California-based messaging app announced on January 4 that it reserves the right to share certain user data, including location and phone numbers, with its parent company Facebook and its subsidiaries like Instagram and Messenger.
This announcement has led to widespread backlash, prompting many Indian users to shift to alternative platforms like Signal and Telegram. To counter the exodus, WhatsApp has launched an advertising campaign to reassure users.
A petition filed in the Delhi High Court argues that WhatsApp's new policy amounts to user surveillance, jeopardizes national security, and violates the constitutional right to privacy. The petition claims the policy allows WhatsApp to create a "360-degree profile" of a user's online activity and raises concerns about user data being transmitted and governed under foreign laws.
Calling the policy "arbitrary" and an example of "browbeating," the petition seeks intervention against the February 8 deadline imposed on users to accept the terms. The matter will be heard by the Delhi High Court on Friday.
WhatsApp maintains that the update does not compromise the privacy of personal or group chats, which remain encrypted, and that the changes are limited to interactions with businesses.