Rahul Gandhi, BJP trade allegations about data sharing

NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi today again targeted the Prime Minister's

NaMo app

, for alleged

data sharing

, a charge the BJP rebutted earlier in the day by pointing a finger at the Congress and accusing it of the same with its website.

Using the hashtag #DeleteNaMoApp, Congress president Rahul tweeted calling PM Narendra Modi "the Big Boss", likely in reference to George Orwell's fictional 'Big Brother'.

"Modi's NaMo App secretly records audio, video, contacts of your friends & family and even tracks your location via GPS. He's the Big Boss who likes to spy on Indians. Now he wants data on our children. 13 lakh NCC cadets are being forced to download the APP. #DeleteNaMoApp", tweeted Rahul



Earlier today, the BJP launched the day's first salvo, alleging that data from users of the Congress party's website is being shared with the party's "friends in Singapore". BJP's information technology head

Amit Malviya

tweeted this allegation with a screenshot of unexplained numbers and IP addresses.



Malviya's tweet used near identical language to Rahul's tweet from yesterday.

The Congress president was referring to a French cybersecurity researcher's recent allegation that the Narendra Modi app shares registered users' data with a US-based behavioural analytics company.

About the NaMo app, the BJP said yesterday that app users' data was only being used for "analytics". And today, the party's Malviya cited bits from the Congress web site's privacy policy to allege it was the culprit.

The bit Malviya highlighted from the Congress party's privacy policy when using its website, says: "For making the use of Website effective and resourceful Indian National Congress may share your information with vendors, consultants, and other service providers or volunteers who are engaged by or working with us and who need access to such information to carry out their work for us; with candidates, organizations, groups or causes that we believe have similar political viewpoints, principles or objectives".

The remaining portion of that paragraph not highlighted about the Congress's privacy policy says: "...when you give us your consent to do so, including if we notify you on the Website, that the information you provide will be shared in a particular manner and you provide such information; when we believe in good faith that we are required to do so by law, court order, as requested by other government or law enforcement authority..."

Malviya said that "implications are grave" about the part of the Congress's privacy policy about sharing users'' information "with candidates, organizations, groups or causes that we believe have similar political viewpoints, principles or objectives".



The BJP leader said those with viewpoints similar to the Congress could mean, "Maoists, stone pelters, Bharat Ke Tukde Gang, Chinese embassy to globally 'renowned' orgs like

Cambridge Analytica

, the field is extensive and wide open."