Whatsapp, Meta playing with privacy rights: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court today came down heavily on Meta Platforms and WhatsApp LLC regarding their privacy policy, saying " "You can't play with the right of privacy of this country, in the name of data sharing".

A CJI Kant led bench was hearing an appeal filed by the tech giant against the order of Competition Commission of India imposing a penalty of 213.14 crores for WhatsApp's 'take it or leave it' privacy policy.

"You are making a mockery of the constitutionalism of this country. We will dismiss it right away. How can you play with the right of privacy of people like this? People pay you for this. Consumer has no choice, you have created monopoly", the CJI told Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi appearing for the tech giants.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told court that the personal data of consumers is not only sold but is also being commercially exploited. "The choice is 'take it or leave it'", he said,

Court also flagged the language used by the tech giants in their policy saying, "How will a street vendor understand these terms and conditions? Can you imagine the kind of language you use! Every such condition must be examined!".

In 2024, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) imposed a penalty of ₹213.14 crore on Meta Platforms for abusing its dominant position through WhatsApp’s controversial 2021 privacy policy update. The Commission also issued cease-and-desist orders and directed Meta and WhatsApp to implement behavioural remedies within a defined timeline.

The policy, which mandated data sharing with Meta companies, was found to be anti-competitive. “Under the previous privacy policy dated 25.08.2016, WhatsApp users were given the option to decide whether they wanted to share their data with Facebook. However, with the latest policy update in 2021, WhatsApp made data sharing with Meta mandatory for all users, removing the earlier option to opt out. As a result, users had to accept the new terms, which include data sharing with Meta, in order to continue using the platform,” the press release issued by CCI highlighted.

CCI's investigation revealed that WhatsApp’s 2021 policy update forced users to accept expanded data-sharing terms with Meta, without providing an opt-out option, unlike the 2016 policy. This change, effective February 8, 2021, required users to either accept the terms or lose access to WhatsApp.

Accordingly, CCI had directed Meta and WhatsApp to restrict data sharing with Meta companies for advertising purposes for five years. Additionally, WhatsApp must enhance transparency by providing a clear explanation of the purpose and scope of user data sharing. Importantly, sharing data for non-advertising purposes cannot be made a condition for accessing WhatsApp services. Users must also be given an opt-out option, along with tools to manage and modify their data-sharing preferences within the app. Furthermore, all future privacy policy updates must strictly comply with these directives.

Case Title: META PLATFORMS, INC vs. COMPETITION COMMISSION OF INDIA AND ORS.

Bench: CJI Kant, Justices Bagchi and Pancholi

Hearing Date: February 3, 2026