SC to hear Meta, WhatsApp plea against Rs 213.14 cr penalty over Privacy Policy

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday pleas filed by Meta Platforms Inc. and WhatsApp challenging a penalty of Rs 213.14 crore imposed by the Competition Commission of India over their privacy policy, Moneycontrol reported.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi is likely to hear the matter.

On February 3, the bench made observations against the two, saying they could not “play with the right to privacy of citizens in the name of data sharing” and alleging that they were creating a monopoly in the market and committing theft of private information of customers.

Decrying WhatsApp’s privacy policy, the bench referred to “silent customers” who were unorganised, digitally dependent and unaware of the implications of data-sharing policies, and asserted, “We will not allow the rights of any citizen of this country to be damaged.” WhatsApp is owned by Meta Platforms Inc.

The top court was hearing appeals against a CCI order that imposed the Rs 213.14 crore penalty over the companies’ privacy policy.

On November 4, 2025, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal set aside a portion of the CCI order that had barred WhatsApp from sharing data with Meta for advertising purposes for five years, but retained the monetary penalty.

The tribunal later clarified that its order on privacy and consent safeguards also applies to user data collection and sharing for non-WhatsApp purposes, including both advertising and non-advertising uses.

The SC would pass an interim order on February 9 and directed that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology be made a party to the appeals.

The bench is also hearing a cross-appeal filed by the CCI challenging the NCLAT ruling insofar as it allowed WhatsApp and Meta to continue sharing users’ data for advertising purposes.