WhatsApp sues Indian government over new internet rules
NEW DELHI (AP) — The messaging app WhatsApp has sued the Indian government seeking to defend its users’ privacy and stop new rules that would require it to make messages “traceable” to external parties.
WhatsApp filed the lawsuit Wednesday in the Delhi High Court. It is arguing that the government rules regarding the traceability of messages are unconstitutional and undermine the fundamental right to privacy.
The company currently uses end-to-end encryption for its messaging service, which encrypts messages in such a way that no one apart from the sender and receiver are able to read the messages sent between them.
The lawsuit follows sweeping regulations for technology companies announced in February that hold them more accountable for content shared on their platforms. A 90-day grace period for complying with the rules ended Wednesday.
“Civil society and technical experts around the world have consistently argued that a requirement to “trace” private messages would break end-to-end encryption and lead to real abuse,” WhatsApp said in a statement.
“WhatsApp is committed to protecting the privacy of people’s personal messages and we will continue to do all we can within the laws of India to do so.”
The new regulations require internet platforms like Facebook and Twitter to erase content authorities deem to be unlawful and to help with police investigations, including identifying the originators of so-called “mischievous information.”
The lawsuit is part of a struggle between some of the world’s biggest technology companies and governments grappling with disinformation, hate speech and other troubles.
Singapore in 2019 passed a law requiring technology platforms to issue corrections of false information if the authorities order them to do so, or face hefty fines. In...
