Kerala HC flags privacy breach in CMO WhatsApp messages to govt staff, seeks explanation

The Kerala High Court on Tuesday orally observed that bulk WhatsApp messages sent to government employees and judges through the office of the Chief Minister appear to be an intrusion into privacy.

Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas made the observation while considering a petition alleging that the CMO illegally accessed mobile phone numbers and email IDs of government employees and members of the judiciary to send messages as part of an election campaign.

According to the petitioners, phone numbers were unlawfully extracted from data submitted by government employees on the SPARK portal. The petition was filed by Advocate George Poonthottam on behalf of Rasheed Ahammed, Associate Professor, KTM College, Malappuram and Anil Kumar K M, clerical assistant, Government Secretariat. 

The court passed an interim order granting time till Friday for the state to explain how the phone numbers were obtained and to establish that they were collected legally and through proper channels. The court also recorded the state's undertaking that no similar messages would be circulated until then.

"Prima facie, I find an intrusion of privacy. Unless you satisfy the court that there is no data leakage or violation of individual rights, further circulation must be withheld," the judge remarked. "If I do not wish to receive such messages, forcing me to read them intrudes into my privacy," he added. 

George Poonthottam, appearing for the petitioners, pointed out that the messages were sent through the WhatsApp Business account of the CMO and questioned how such personal data was accessed and who managed the account. He sought clarity on the safeguards in place for individual data and the authority behind operating the business account.

In response, the state submitted that the messages were sent only to beneficiaries of a particular government scheme. However, the court was not satisfied with the submission and directed the government to file an affidavit detailing the claim.

The court, for the time being, dispensed with issuing notice to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who has been arrayed as the sixth respondent in the case.