WhatsApp is challenging a rule in India that requires it to trace and identify the originator of messages on its platform. The messaging app's parent company, Meta, argues that this would compromise user privacy and require it to break its end-to-end encryption.
"If we are told to break encryption, then WhatsApp goes," said Tejas Karia, WhatsApp's lawyer, in court on Thursday.
The Delhi High Court heard WhatsApp's plea challenging the rule, which is part of India's 2021 IT Rules. The court has scheduled the next hearing for August 14.
"We will have to keep a complete chain, and we don't know which messages will be asked to be decrypted. It means millions and millions of messages will have to be stored for a number of years," Karia added.
The court said that privacy rights were not absolute and "somewhere balance has to be done".
The bench, while observing that the matter would have to be argued by the parties, asked if a similar law exists in any other country.
"There is no such rule anywhere else in the world. Not even in Brazil," the lawyer replied.
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What Is WhatsApp Saying?
WhatsApp has clearly said it would not break its end-to-end encryption as it argues it would violate users' privacy.
In a 2021 petition, the Meta-owned messaging platform argued that identifying the first originator of information, as ordered by the Indian government, would compromise its encryption and violate users' fundamental right to privacy.
What Is Indian Government Saying?
The government, however, maintains that traceability is crucial in tackling harmful content such as fake news and hate speech.
According to the government, the law empowers it to expect tech entities to create a safe cyberspace and counter illegal content. The government cites Section 87 of the IT Act, which enables it to formulate rules like Rule 4(2) to curb content that threatens national security or communal harmony.
