--- title: "India's top court questions WhatsApp policy of sharing user data with Meta entities" description: "India's Supreme Court is questioning WhatsApp's data-sharing policy with Meta, suggesting it misleads users. The court warned of potentially reinstating a ban on data sharing, which was previously imp" type: "news" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/274645789.md" published_at: "2026-02-03T11:30:10.000Z" --- # India's top court questions WhatsApp policy of sharing user data with Meta entities > India's Supreme Court is questioning WhatsApp's data-sharing policy with Meta, suggesting it misleads users. The court warned of potentially reinstating a ban on data sharing, which was previously imposed by India's antitrust regulator. WhatsApp faces a $25.4 million fine and restrictions on sharing user data for advertising. The court's chief justice criticized the privacy policy for being difficult for average users to understand. The case will continue next week, with implications for WhatsApp's operations in India, its largest market. By Arpan Chaturvedi NEW DELHI, Feb 3 (Reuters) - India’s top court on Tuesday warned it could reimpose a ban on Meta-owned (META.O) WhatsApp’s data sharing with other group entities, saying the messaging app’s privacy policy misled users, two lawyers present in court said. WhatsApp has been locked in a dispute with India’s antitrust regulator since November 2024, when it fined the company $25.4 million and barred WhatsApp from sharing user data with other Meta entities for advertising purposes for five years. An appeals court later lifted the data-sharing restriction but kept the monetary penalty, prompting both sides to approach the Supreme Court. During Tuesday’s hearing, India’s chief justice questioned WhatsApp’s privacy policy and said it was “very cleverly designed to mislead users,” the two lawyers said. “Your privacy policy is designed in such a way that how can a poor elderly woman … or (someone who) comes from a rural area understand your intentions?” Chief Justice Surya Kant said, according to the lawyers. WhatsApp declined to comment on the remarks, saying the case was sub judice. India is Meta’s biggest market by user numbers. It does not disclose country-specific figures, but research firm DataReportal estimates Facebook has 403 million users in India and Instagram 481 million. WhatsApp previously said the ban might force it to roll back or pause some features in India and would hurt its business. The Supreme Court did not give a final verdict, and will continue to hear the case next week. Meta’s privacy policy has also been a point of contention elsewhere. In 2023, it agreed to clarify changes to its policy in plain and intelligible language after it was accused of violating European Union law by failing to do so. The Indian antitrust authority’s 2024 ruling said WhatsApp’s policy gave users the choice of either accepting the changes or risking losing access to the service and provided no opt-out feature. WhatsApp publicly says it shares with Meta a user’s phone number, transaction data, how they interact with businesses and mobile device information. ### Related Stocks - [META.US - Meta Platforms](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/META.US.md) - [METW.US - Roundhill META WeeklyPay ETF](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/METW.US.md) - [METU.US - Direxion Daily Meta Bull 2x Shares](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/METU.US.md) - [FBL.US - GraniteShares 2x Long META Daily ETF](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/FBL.US.md) ## Related News & Research | Title | Description | URL | |-------|-------------|-----| | Meta 表示其針對 2026 年美國中期選舉的策略旨在實現透明化 | Meta 表示其對 2026 年美國中期選舉的策略旨在尋求透明度 | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276365113.md) | | Meta 擬部署「數百萬夥」Nvidia 晶片 進一步加強合作關係 | Meta 計劃在未來幾年內部署數百萬顆 Nvidia 的 Blackwell 與 Rubin GPU，進一步加強與 Nvidia 的合作關係。此舉將使 Meta 更多地使用 Nvidia 的 AI 處理器和網絡設備，預計將為 Nvidia | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276193053.md) | | Meta 的虛擬現實元宇宙正在放棄虛擬現實技術 | Meta 正在將其 Horizon Worlds 元宇宙平台的重點幾乎完全轉向移動設備，將其與 Quest VR 平台分開。這一變化是在大規模裁員和虛擬現實工作室關閉之後做出的，因為 Meta 旨在更好地與 Roblox 和 Fortnit | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276377647.md) | | Meta 連續第二年削減員工的股權獎勵 | Meta 連續第二年減少員工股權獎勵 | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276437231.md) | | 如果 5 年前在 Meta Platforms 投資 1000 美元，現在會值多少錢 | Meta Platforms（納斯達克代碼：META）在過去五年中實現了 19.33% 的年化回報，超出市場 7.22%。目前市值為 1.62 萬億美元，五年前投資 1000 美元於 META 股票的價值現在為 2470.79 美元，突顯了 | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276289550.md) | --- > **Disclaimer**: This article is for reference only and does not constitute any investment advice.