HC judge recuses from hearing PIL against WhatsApp privacy policy
By MYBRANDBOOK
A Delhi High Court judge Justice Prathiba M Singh of the Delhi High Court has recused from hearing the PIL against WhatsApp's new privacy policy, which will now be assigned for hearing on January 18 before another bench by the court's Chief Justice.
Before recusing, Justice Prathiba M Singh objected to the mail sent to her office by WhatsApp. The mail had requested her not to hear the case as she had appeared in a connected case as a lawyer a few years back. Although WhatsApp unconditionally withdrew the email later, the judge decided to not hear the case despite Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Chetan Sharma's request, who urged her to hear the "important issue of law" which affected the public.
The PIL filed by Chaitanya Rohilla has objected to various aspects of WhatsApp's new privacy policy; be it device and connection information, location information and interface with third-party services and service providers. It has objected to the new regime where WhatsApp will share information globally, both internally within the Facebook companies and externally with its partners and service providers.
As per the new policy, WhatsApp can transfer, transmit, store or process information in the United States or any other country or territory where the Facebook Companies’ affiliates and partners are located. The petition claims that WhatsApp’s updated privacy policy, which was made known on January 4 this year, essentially takes away the choice users had till now to not share their data with other Facebook-owned and third-party apps. WhatsApp had made it mandatory for its users to accept the new policy by February 8 or else the services and accounts of the respective users would be terminated.
The petitioner fears that the new regime will integrate Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram to give a 360-degree profile into a person's online activity, with a high level of insight into a person's private and personal activities without any government oversight and in the absence of a data protection authority.
On July 10 last year, the Supreme Court of India had allowed serving legal summons to citizens via WhatsApp. Citing extensive use of the app, the petition has contended that WhatsApp is discharging public functions despite being a private entity, and "cannot be allowed to go berserk at its whims".
The petition has also pointed to the disparity in the updated privacy policy, which won't apply to the European Region since there's already a data protection law in place out there. WhatsApp is barred from sharing data with Facebook in the European Region as it contravenes the provisions of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which deals with data protection and privacy in the European Union and the European Economic Area.
The petitioner alleges that WhatsApp and Facebook are trying to arbitrarily try to enforce their policy in India as they see vulnerability in the absence of any comprehensive law in this domain.
BREAKING NEWS
TECHNO TRENDS
Legal Battle Over IT Act Intensifies Amid Musk’s India Plans
The outcome of the legal dispute between X Corp and the Indian government c...
Wipro inks 10-year deal with Phoenix Group's ReAssure UK worth
The agreement, executed through Wipro and its 100% subsidiary,...
Centre announces that DPDP Rules nearing Finalisation by April
The government seeks to refine the rules for robust data protection, ensuri...
Home Ministry cracks down on PoS agents in digital arrest scam
Digital arrest scams are a growing cybercrime where victims are coerced or ...
E-Magazine
TECHNOTAINMENT
Hrithik Roshan to endorse RuPay as Brand Ambassador
RuPay is reportedly planning to feature Bollywood superstar Hrithik Rosha
India Today Group launches – AI Pop Stars
Staying true to our industry leadership position in using cutting-edge tech
MOVERS & SHAKERS
TelioLabs ropes in Phaniraj V A as the Group CEO
TelioLabs has announced the onboarding of Phaniraj V A as its new Group CE
Wipro Appoints Amit Kumar as Managing Partner and Global Head
Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT, BSE: 507685, NSE: WIPRO), a leading technology s
OPEN YOUR EYES
INTERVIEWS
Bolstering its commitment to help build a truly self-reliant B
CP PLUS is dedicated to spreading a sense of security to every corner of In
Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise Carrying a 100 year legacy ahead
A good amount of R&D works and global support services are operated out of
HOT PICK
MSI Announces the availability of RTX 50 series of laptops in
MSI, the innovative computing manufacturer in gaming, creator
Nothing Phone (3a) goes on sale today, starting at Rs 19,999
The phone was launched on March 4, featuring a 50MP main, ultra-wide, and t
MAKE IN INDIA BRANDS
VERSA NETWORKS INDIA PVT. LTD.
TALLY SOLUTIONS PVT. LTD.
FIRE BOLTT
CENTRE FOR DEVELOPMENT OF TELEMATICS (C-DOT)
EMINENT CIO'S OF INDIA
ICONS OF INDIA
Icons Of India : ALOK OHRIE
Alok Ohrie leads Dell Technologies’ India business, overseeing Sales...
Icons Of India : Puneet Chandok
Puneet Chandok is President, Microsoft India & South Asia and is respo...
Icons Of India : CP Gurnani
Former Managing Director and CEO of the well-known IT service company ...
PARTNER SPEAKERS
PSU
HPCL - Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.
HPCL is an integrated oil and gas company involved in refining, market...
PFC - Power Finance Corporation Ltd
PFC is a leading financial institution in India specializing in power ...
LIC - Life Insurance Corporation of India
LIC is the largest state-owned life insurance company in India...
VIDEOS
Top 25 Brands
Global Indian industry
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Lal Karsanbhai, President & CEO, Emerson
Lal Karsanbhai, President and CEO of Emerson, assumed the leadership i...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Shantanu Narayen, CEO- Adobe Systems Incorporated
Shantanu Narayen, CEO of Adobe Systems Incorporated, is renowned for h...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - NEAL MOHAN, CEO - Youtube
Neal Mohan, the CEO of YouTube, has a bold vision for the platform’s...
ITFORUM 2025
CMO of the Year
WOMEN LEADERSHIP
IMAGE GALLERY
TRENDS IN TECHNOLOGY
MORE VIDEOS
ADVERTISEMENTS
TECHNOLOGY DISRUPTION
UNICORNS REVOLUTIONISING
of images belongs to the respective copyright holders
