The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has sent a new notice to WhatsApp asking the Facebook-owned messaging platform to withdraw its updated privacy policy, calling it an undermining of the values of informational privacy and data security.
In the communication sent late on Tuesday, the IT ministry has given WhatsApp time till May 25 to respond to the new notice, failing which “all necessary steps in consonance with the law” could be taken against the platform.
“We have a sovereign responsibility to protect the rights and interests of Indian citizens. The government will consider various options available under the law,” a senior IT ministry official said.
The latest communication sent to WhatsApp, the officials said, has reiterated that “the changes to the privacy policy and the manner of introducing these changes including in FAQ (frequently asked questions) undermines the sacrosanct values of informational privacy, data security and user choice for Indian users and harms the rights and interests of Indian citizens”.
This is the second such communication sent by the IT ministry asking WhatsApp to withdraw its controversial privacy policy. Earlier this year in January, the ministry had written a letter to Will Cathcart, the global Chief Executive Officer of WhatsApp, asking him to withdraw the latest privacy and policy update on the instant messaging platform.
Surjitt Sahani
