WhatsApp Abused of Dominance by Forcing Data Sharing, Competition Commission of India Tells NCLAT

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) accused WhatsApp of abusing its dominant position by removing users' option to opt out of cross-platform data sharing in its 2021 privacy policy update.

Senior advocate Balbir Singh argued before the NCLAT that Meta’s integration of WhatsApp with Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger locks users into its ecosystem, making switching difficult despite alternatives like Telegram or Signal.

The CCI imposed a ₹213.14 crore penalty, finding the policy forced users to comply without real choice and constituted exploitative abuse.

WhatsApp and Meta challenged the order, citing a lack of user surveys or evidence. The NCLAT stayed the data-sharing ban for five years but upheld part of the penalty.