WhatsApp CEO to meet IT minister today amid fake news controversy
WhatsApp Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Chris Daniels is scheduled to meet Electronics and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Tuesday amid the controversy over viral circulation of fake news on the instant messaging platform. Facebook-owned WhatsApp has already received two notices from the government to check spread of fake news or be liable to be treated as an abettor. The government has toughened its stand on WhatsApp as it wants the platform to tackle the problem of fake messages, which, in many cases has led to mob lynchings. Replying to notices, WhatsApp has said that it would strengthen its presence in India but it has expressed inability in tracing origin of messages citing consumer privacy. “Tracing private messages would undermine the private nature of the app with the potential of serious consequences for free expression, which would be very troubling to many users,” WhatsApp has told the government. This inability has become a bone of contention between WhatsApp and t...