Breaking News: WhatsApp Warning to Leave India

Meta, the owner of the WhatsApp messaging app, has told the Delhi High Court that it will leave the country if the government forces it to crack down on encryption (a secret and symbolic software language) or disclose data. Meta’s lawyer Tejas Karia told the Delhi High Court that WhatsApp’s status as a messaging platform would be completely destroyed if encryption is called for. This compromises user privacy. In response to this argument, the bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Manmohan said, “Has the issue of breaking encryption been implemented in any other country?” In response, the lawyer of Meta said that there is no such law in any country in the world. Not even in Brazil.