India / Won't force users to accept new privacy policy until govt passes data bill: WhatsApp

New Delhi: WhatsApp, an instant messaging platform owned by Facebook, told the Delhi high court on Friday it will voluntarily put a hold on the rollout of its ‘contentious’ new privacy policy until a data protection bill comes into force. It also told the court that it won’t limit the functionality of its platform to users who choose not to opt for the new privacy policy in the meanwhile.

A bench of chief justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh was hearing the appeals of Facebook and WhatsApp against the single-judge order refusing to stop the competition regulator Competition Commission of India (CCI) order directing a probe into WhatsApp's new privacy policy.

"We voluntarily agreed to put it (the policy) on hold... we will not compel people to accept," said advocate Harish Salve appearing on the behalf of WhatsApp.

Nonetheless, it would continue to display the update to its users, Salve informed.

In January this year, WhatsApp updated its privacy policy, which allows the instant messaging service to share data about users' interactions with business accounts with its parent company Facebook.

The move sparked major privacy concerns among the users as well as outrage after WhatsApp had announced it would limit the functionality of its platform in case users choose not to accept the conditions. Following criticisms, WhatsApp pushed back the roll-out of the policy but reiterated in February that it will go ahead with its decision. This was despite the Indian government writing to the company asking it to abandon its plans.

The Centre cited the rules in the Information Technology (Reasonable Security Practices and Procedures and Sensitive Personal Data or Information) Rules, 2011, to contend that the updated privacy policy fails to specify the types of “sensitive personal” data being collected, and with whom the information was being shared.