Countering the Big Brother: Experts bat for more clarity on privacy laws

Experts say current laws are inadequate when it comes to protection of privacy from unauthorised surveillance by govt

The tug of war between Facebook-owned WhatsApp, the chat app, and the Indian government has raised many questions on the grey, dimly-lit areas of snooping and surveillance. While the jury still out and it is too early to lay the blame squarely either on WhatsApp or the central government, experts feel there needs to be more clarity on the laws surrounding surveillance by the state.

Earlier last week reports surfaced that journalists and human rights activists in India were the targets of a surveillance program carried out using Israeli spyware Pegasus. The report led to the government categorically denying it had