After the Competition Commission of India (CCI) imposed a fine of Rs 213 crore on social media company Meta (Facebook), the company has responded by saying that this fine is wrong and we plan to consider appealing against it. Making. CCI imposed this penalty on Meta in relation to WhatsApp privacy policy changes made in 2021. According to PTI news, CCI on Monday asked WhatsApp to refrain for a period of five years from sharing user data with other applications owned by Meta for advertising purposes.
Order to implement some practical measures
According to the CCI order, Meta and WhatsApp have also been asked to implement certain corrective measures within a stipulated time frame to resolve anti-competitive issues. Remember, the 2021 update didn't change the privacy of people's personal messages and was introduced as an option for users at the time, a Meta spokesperson said. We also ensured that no one's account is deleted or WhatsApp service functionality is lost due to this update.
Meta clarified
Meta further said that the update was about introducing optional commercial features on WhatsApp and providing more transparency around data collection and use. A Meta spokesperson said that since that time, users have been incredibly valuable to people and businesses, enabling organizations and government institutions to provide citizen services during Covid and beyond, as well as India's economy. Small businesses have been supported in moving forward.
banned on meta
A Meta spokesperson said that WhatsApp is able to do all this because it provides a service supported by Meta. We are committed to finding a way forward that allows us to continue to deliver the experiences that people and businesses expect from us. Meanwhile, CCI has barred WhatsApp from sharing the data collected on its platform with other meta companies or meta company products for advertising purposes for 5 years. On sharing WhatsApp user data for purposes other than advertising, the regulator said WhatsApp's policy should include a detailed description of user data shared with other meta companies or meta company products.
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