India’s competition authority has instructed WhatsApp to stop sharing user data for advertising purposes with other Meta-owned applications for five years and has imposed a fine of $25.4 million (approximately Ksh.3 billion) on the U.S. technology company due to antitrust violations linked to the messaging app’s privacy policy introduced in 2021.
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) initiated an investigation in March 2021 regarding WhatsApp’s privacy policy, which permitted data sharing with Facebook and its subsidiaries, leading to widespread criticism.
The CCI stated, “User data collected on WhatsApp must not be shared with other Meta companies for purposes beyond providing the WhatsApp service, and this sharing cannot be a prerequisite for users to access WhatsApp services in India.”
Meta has not yet provided a response to Reuters’ inquiry for comments.
Major technology firms, including Apple, Google, and Meta, are facing new regulatory hurdles with India’s proposed antitrust legislation, which is similar to the European Union’s framework.
The Indian government is currently reviewing a report from a panel set up by the corporate affairs ministry in February, which suggested a new “Digital Competition Bill” to enhance existing antitrust regulations.
The U.S.-India Business Council, an influential U.S. lobbying organization, has already expressed opposition to this initiative, citing concerns about its potential impact on business operations.
