After Ban WhatsApp Restored In Brazil

By Peter R - 17 Dec '15 15:36PM

WhatsApp services have been restored in Brazil after being suspended for several hours as part a 48-hour suspension.

A court in Brazil ordered suspension of WhatsApp starting Wednesday midnight for non-compliance in a case pertaining to the country's largest criminal organization Primeiro Comando da Capital that uses WhatApp for its operations, reports PC Magazine. From Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's comments following the ban order, it is understood that Brazilian government sought user information from the messaging service.

"I am stunned that our efforts to protect people's data would result in such an extreme decision by a single judge to punish every person in Brazil who uses WhatsApp," Zuckerberg said in a post, according to Forbes.

The ban was quickly reversed after an outrage in the country, Reuters reports. Facebook claims nearly 100 million in Brazil use WhatsApp. After the ban kicked in, other messaging service providers like Telegram claimed an exponential rise in downloads. It was also reported that WhatsApp services were disrupted in Argentina and Chile.

While reversing the ban, a higher court levied a bigger fine on WhatsApp for non-compliance.

"Considering the constitutional principles, it does not look reasonable that millions of users be affected as a result of the company's inertia to provide information," the judge who reversed the order noted, according to Reuters.