India: Whatsapp fined millions

The messenger service Whatsapp is not allowed to share user data with other applications of its parent company Meta for advertising purposes in India for five years. This was decided by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Monday and imposed a fine of 213.14 million rupees (around 24 million euros) on the company for antitrust violations.

India's competition watchdogs accuse Whatsapp, which has more than 500 million users in India, of abusing its dominant market position. In 2021, Whatsapp updated its terms of use and privacy policy, requiring users to accept extended data sharing terms with meta companies in order to continue using the app. As a result, the CCI launched an investigation into the way Whatsapp collects user data and shares it with other meta-companies.

"The sharing of user data collected on Whatsapp with other meta companies or meta company products for purposes other than the provision of Whatsapp services shall not be made a condition for users' access to the Whatsapp service in India," the CCI now said in a statement. In addition to the fine, the antitrust authority has ordered Whatsapp to stop sharing user data with meta-companies for advertising purposes for five years. After this period, users must be given the opportunity to opt out of the sharing of data that is not related to the service. Whatsapp must also explain what data is shared with meta-companies in detail, how it is used and what purposes it serves.

Network blocking and regulation of social networks

Whatsapp has long been used differently and more extensively in India than in Europe. For example, Whatsapp users in India can place their supermarket orders directly in the messenger. However, shoppers also have to enter their bank details on Whatsapp. After social network operators in India were obliged in 2021 to provide authorities with the originator of a shared message on request, Whatsapp filed a lawsuit against this requirement.

With more than one billion subscribers, India is the second largest telecommunications market in the world. At the same time, the country is the world champion in complete network blocking. Internet blocking is a popular tool for local and national authorities in India, for example to crack down on protests. Not everyone in the country likes this. Last year, the Indian Telecom Regulatory Authority TRAI made a new attempt to regulate over-the-top services (OTT services), including social networks such as Facebook, Whatsapp and Signal.

(akn)