Tuesday, Feb 24, 2026 21:45 [IST]
Last Update: Monday, Feb 23, 2026 16:04 [IST]
NEW DELHI, (IANS): Messaging platform
WhatsApp on Monday informed the Supreme Court that it will comply with the
directions issued by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) requiring the
platform to provide users greater control over whether their data is shared
with other Meta companies.
A special bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya
Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi permitted WhatsApp and
its parent company Meta Platforms to withdraw their interim applications
against the CCI penalty after the companies undertook to implement the National
Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) order, which extended CCI's privacy and
consent safeguards to advertising-related data sharing.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for WhatsApp and
Meta, informed the apex court that the companies had filed an affidavit
explaining their data-sharing practices and had decided not to press their plea
seeking a stay of the NCLAT order.
"We don’t want a stay now. We are complying with the
directions," he submitted, adding that the company would ensure
implementation of the appellate tribunal’s directions by March 16, 2026.
Recording the submission, the CJI Surya Kant-led Bench
dismissed the interim applications as not pressed, while clarifying that the
main appeals challenging the validity of WhatsApp’s 2021 privacy policy would
remain pending before the Supreme Court.
It also directed WhatsApp to file a compliance affidavit
before the CCI in terms of the NCLAT order.
In November 2025, the NCLAT upheld the CCI’s finding that
WhatsApp had imposed unfair conditions on users through its 2021 privacy policy
and that cross-platform data sharing strengthened Meta’s position in the online
display advertising market.
It affirmed the Rs 213.14 crore penalty but set aside the
CCI’s direction imposing a five-year blanket ban on sharing WhatsApp user data
for advertising purposes.
The appellate tribunal had held that once users are
provided meaningful opt-in and opt-out choices, a complete prohibition on data
sharing for advertising would not be warranted.
It had granted three months’ time to implement the
revised framework.
Meta Platforms and WhatsApp filed appeals against the
NCLAT judgment affirming the CCI’s penalty on WhatsApp.
In addition, the CCI filed a cross?appeal
challenging the NCLAT’s decision insofar as it
permitted WhatsApp to share user data for advertising purposes.
In an earlier hearing, the apex court had expressed
serious concern over WhatsApp’s 2021 privacy policy and the sharing of user
data by Meta Platforms, observing that the platform cannot be allowed to
"play with the right to privacy" of Indian users.
Agreeing to admit the appeals, the CJI-led Bench made
sharp observations on the nature of the privacy policy, describing it as a
"take it or leave it" arrangement that leaves consumers with no
meaningful choice.
"What is the choice? You have a complete monopoly in
the market, and you are saying you are giving a choice. It is either you walk
out of WhatsApp, or we will share your data," the apex court had remarked.
Flagging concerns over the impact on ordinary users, the
CJI?led
Bench repeatedly questioned the fairness of the privacy policy, remarking:
"A poor woman selling fruits on the street -- will she understand the
terms of your policy? The language is so cleverly drafted that even some of us
may not understand it."
Describing the alleged data practices as deeply
problematic, the Supreme Court had further observed: "This is a decent way
of committing theft of private information. You cannot play with the right to
privacy of this country. You are making a mockery of constitutionalism."
