Identifying originator of info undermines free speech: WhatsApp in HC

NEW DELHI, May 26: WhatsApp, in its petition in Delhi High Court, has said that enabling identification of the first originator of information on its platform in India puts end-to-end encryption and its benefits at risk.
It has challenged the requirement in the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 202, that intermediaries like it enable “the identification of the first originator of the information” in India on their end-to-end encrypted messaging services (traceability), upon government or court order.
“To require intermediaries like the petitioner to enable the identification of the first originator of information in India on their end-to-end encrypted messaging services, there must be a clear policy declaration in Section 79 that Parliament intended to impose such a requirement. However, no such declaration exists in Section 79,” said the plea.
It contended the requirement that intermediaries enable the identification of the first originator of information in India on their platforms puts end-to-end encryption and its benefits at risk. “Petitioner would be forced to build the ability to identify the first originator for every message sent in India on its platform upon request by the government forever. This breaks end-to-end encryption and the privacy principles underlying it, and impermissibly infringes upon users’ fundamental rights to privacy and freedom of speech,” added the plea. (PTI)