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Popular messaging app WhatsApp’s parent company Meta has threatened that it will shut down the app in India if they are forced to break the end-to-end encryption by the Indian Government. Read this article till the end to know this everything about this in detail.
In a bold move, WhatsApp issues a warning to the Delhi High Court, highlighting the possibility of exiting India if pressured to compromise on encryption standards.
WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps in the world and it’s used by millions of people all over the world. Recently, when Delhi High Court was hearing a petition filed by WhatsApp against the Information Technology (IT) Rules 2021 and during the hearing, Tejas Kataria, who is representing WhatsApp in this case said that the company will close its operations in India rather than breaking the chat encryption. He said that around 400 million people use the messaging app in the country and the prior reason of this is the encryption which ensures privacy.
Why Does Government Want WhatsApp to Allow Tracing the Messages?
The Indian Government brought the new IT Rules in 2021 which forces the messaging apps to allow the government to trace the messages and know the origin of the message. Indian Government said that this is necessary to reduce the number of cases of hatespread.
WhatsApp’s Point of View
WhatsApp has challenged these new rules in the court saying that these laws are against the privacy of the users and no other country in the world has such rules. Its lawyer said in the court that enfringing the user’s privacy is against the constitution and the Meta would prefer to shut down WhatsApp in India rather than breaking the encryption because user’s privacy is utmost important for them.
Is WhatsApp Really Leaving the Indian Market?
The next hearing of this case will now take place on 14th of August and it’s still not clear if WhatsApp will get relief on these new rules or not but it seems like Meta is clear that it would choose shutting the app rather that compromising on user’s privacy. Only time will tell if WhatsApp will continue working in India or not.
Read More: Meta AI Chatbot Integration begins on WhatsApp: Limited User Rollout and How it Works
Some FAQs
Has WhatsApp Shut Down the App in India?
No, WhatsApp has not shut down their app in India and you can use it without any problem. They have just warned the court that they might do this in the future if they are forced to comply with the new rules.
Is the Government Reading Our Chats?
No, WhatsApp has not broken the encryption and Government of India can not trace or read your messages yet.
Will WhatsApp Break the Encryption?
Hopefully, no! WhatsApp has clearly stated that they would choose to leave the Indian market rather than breaking the encryption because user privacy is the most important thing for WhatsApp.
This was all about WhatsApp leaving the Indian market.
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