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In an ongoing hearing at the Delhi High Court, Meta-owned WhatsApp told the court that it would effectively cease operations in India if it were forced to compromise message encryption.
The platform emphasized that end-to-end encryption is at the core of its services. It safeguards user privacy by ensuring that only the sender and recipient can access the message content.
“As a platform, we are saying, if we are told to break encryption, then WhatsApp goes,” Tejas Karia, appearing for WhatsApp,
He underscored that people choose WhatsApp for its robust privacy features. With over 400 million users, India stands as WhatsApp’s largest market.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg previously lauded India’s adoption of messaging technologies during a virtual address at Meta’s annual event last year. “India is a country that’s at the forefront… You’re leading the world in terms of how people and businesses have embraced messaging,” he had said.
WhatsApp and its parent company, Meta, are challenging the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021, which mandate tracing chats and identifying original messengers.
The companies arguing against the IT Rules 2021 say that these rules undermine encryption, thus infringing upon user privacy guaranteed by the Indian Constitution.
The messaging platform contends that the regulations compromise encryption and violate fundamental rights enshrined in Articles 14, 19, and 21 of the Indian Constitution.
WhatsApp’s legal representative emphasized the absence of similar regulations globally, stressing the impracticality of storing vast amounts of decrypted messages for extended periods.
On the other hand, Kirtiman Singh, representing the central government, defended the regulations, citing the necessity of tracing message originators in the contemporary environment.
The Delhi High Court has scheduled hearings for WhatsApp and Meta’s petitions on August 14, acknowledging that privacy rights are not absolute and require a delicate balance.
