Mint Explainer: Why did NCLAT lift CCI ban on WhatsApp data-sharing practices?
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. NEW DELHI : On 23 January, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) temporarily stayed the Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) November 2023 order, which imposed a five-year ban on WhatsApp's data-sharing practices with parent Meta Platforms Inc.-owned companies for advertising purposes. The NCLAT’s decision comes as a major relief for the US tech giant, which has a combined user base of 850 million—350 million on Facebook and over 500 million on WhatsApp.
Mint explains the entire case and the NCLAT’s decision. The NCLAT chairperson justice Ashok Bhushan and technical member Arun Baroka temporarily stayed the CCI’s November 2023 order imposing the five-year ban on WhatsApp’s data-sharing with Meta-owned companies. To secure a stay on the ₹213.14 crore penalty, the appellate tribunal directed Meta to pay 50% of the fine within two weeks.
The amount may be refunded if Meta wins the case. The NCLAT upheld the part of the CCI ruling confirming users’ right to opt out of data sharing. It ordered the social messaging app to clarify its data-sharing practices, giving users more control over their choices.
The NCLAT also advised the parties to approach the appellate tribunal for modifications, especially in light of the upcoming Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDP Act). The NCLAT’s decision was influenced by the Supreme Court’s February 2023 ruling, which refused to stay WhatsApp’s 2021 privacy policy and directed the company to ensure that users who disagreed with the new terms would not lose services until the new data protection regime was implemented. WhatsApp’s undertaking confirmed that it would not restrict functionality for users who did not accept the
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