The Supreme Court dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) on Thursday, concerning the privacy and security of communications via messaging apps WhatsApp and Telegram. A bench comprising Justices M.M. Sundresh and Aravind Kumar rejected the plea by K.G. Omanakuttan, a software engineer, who flagged a vulnerability in the Android versions of these apps. This loophole allegedly permits unauthorized replacement of media files, like images, within chats, potentially compromising user privacy and communication integrity.
The PIL argued that such vulnerabilities infringe on fundamental rights, including the right to privacy, freedom of expression, and the right to a fair investigation. Omanakuttan urged both apps to implement stricter measures to prevent media file tampering on Android devices. Notably, the Kerala High Court had previously dismissed a similar plea by Omanakuttan in 2021.
Additionally, the petition highlighted the non-compliance of WhatsApp with the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules of 2021, which mandates social media platforms to identify the origin of certain messages. WhatsApp, owned by Mark Zuckerberg, contested these IT rules in the Delhi High Court, claiming they infringe on user privacy and are unconstitutional. The platform argued that tracing message origins would undermine user privacy, a concern also faced by other platforms like Twitter (now X), Facebook, and Instagram under the same regulations.
