The Delhi High Court heard WhatsApp’s petition on Thursday, which challenged a section of the 2021 Information Technology Rules for social media intermediaries that compels companies to identify the initial source of information to a court or other competent body.
WhatsApp and its parent company, Facebook Inc (now Meta), declined to comply with the Indian government requirements. WhatsApp’s counsel, Tejas Karia, warned the Division bench, which included Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora, that if we are told to break encryption, WhatsApp will go. The Delhi High Court stated that “privacy rights were not absolute….balance needs to be done.” The court will now hear the case on August 14.
What happened ?
Messaging platforms WhatsApp and Meta filed a plea challenging India’s IT rules 2021 for social media intermediaries, requiring them to identify the first originator of information. WhatsApp and its parent company have challenged Information Technology Rule 4(2) of the 2021 IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code), which requires significant social media intermediaries to enable the identification of the first originator of the information if required by a court order or another competent authority.
WhatsApp’s response
WhatsApp has stated explicitly that it would not breach its end-to-end encryption because it believes it would violate users’ privacy. In its 2021 appeal, the Meta-backed startup said that the Indian government’s request to identify the initial author of the material posed a threat to its “end-to-end encryption” and “user privacy.” It argued the traceability requirement violated the fundamental right to privacy.
What the Indian govt. is saying ?
The Centre contends that traceability, or understanding the source of information, is critical in combating harmful content such as fake news and hate speech. The government claims that the legislation gives it the authority to require such entities to promote secure cyberspace and combat illegal content.
It stated that Section 87 of the IT Act grants the authority to create Rule 4(2) to combat false news or “instigating” information that endangers national security or communal harmony.
WhatsApp has faced similar issues in other countries, but it remains committed to its principles and the notion that all communications should and will be safe for the foreseeable future. After all, security is one of the primary reasons WhatsApp became so successful, prompting Meta to to buy it for over $15 billion more than a decade ago.
